Subtotal Colectomy

Thank you amy for sharing your story with me, I really appreciate your advice and compassion :)

Hi Stacey,

I too have had MANY abdominal surgeries and adhesion problems as well as chronic constipation.  I had a sub-total colectomy in July of '08.  It was the BEST thing that has ever happened to me health wise!!!  My surgery has been extremely successful without ANY complications.  I had an open surgery due to all of my previous abdominal surgeries but was only in the hospital for 5 days and went back to work full-time 6 weeks later.  No, I wasn't completely healed, that really does take your body up to a year, as this is a MAJOR operation but my body did slowly adjust.  I went from 20+ bms a day to 8-10 a day by 6 weeks and now I have just one a day.  I continue to remain on the low residue diet as per my GI dr; most drs/surgeons let their patients eat whatever they want by 6 weeks but I feel that is one of the key reasons of my surgery's success (no blockages).

If you have any more questions or just want to talk about this whole thing, you may email me, just click on my screen name for my email.

I wish you a very successful surgery as life can be so much better than it is for you right now.

Judy

Hi Stacey,

I am on Total Colectomy part 28 too. I did not have colonic inertia but developed some weird outlet issue in 2005. I had a defecogram done in 2006 and the resident radiologist put on the report I had a sigmoidocele (that means part of the sigmoid colon drops in between the rectum and the vagina and partially blocks the side of the rectum.) What I did not know at the time and have since found out in the course of a big review for a medmal suit is that it was only a loop of small intestine that dropped into the rectovaginal septum but did so ONLY AFTER I'd expelled the contrast so was not the cause of the problem. 3 colorectal docs proposed sigmoid colon removal based on the erroneous radiology report. The surgeons I went to also did 6 other procedures (needed right ovary out due to large benign cyst) but then they did 5 other unneeded procedures (many unconsented). WHere my sigmoid colon was attached to my rectum strictured (scarred in) to only a diameter of 4 millimeters (about half the diameter of a pencil). The colorectal doc said "Nothing should be done about it." Left me unable to poop. Just gave me a script for colyte bowel prep and said take a half gallon when you get backed up. NICE GUY!!!! NOT! Then I was unable to eat due to repeated small bowel obstructions as adhesions had wrapped around my small intestine. Had to fly to Mayo Clinic for a CT entercolysis test to get this figured out. Then the pelvic muscle that controls the angling of my rectum was scarred and now holds it at a right angle. This muscle worked fine prior to the surgery. Took 13 months and 11 docs at 7 medical centers to diagnose the extent of the damage. Then it was a real challenge to find someone who was willing to deal with all this. Luckily one doc was willing. Had dense adhesions removed from small intestine and a sheet of SEPRAFILM ADHESION BARRIER put it to lessen the density and number of new adhesions. Then I had to have a permanent ileostomy. But this beat dying which is where I was heading as I couldn't eat, get nutrients or expel waste. Luckily have been good so far; it's been 2 years+ Am praying I stay OK. Have done extensive traveling including a world cruise. Ask your doc if he uses an adhesion barrier in sheet form or spray form. Good luck. Rosemary