How long can a stoma last without follow-up surgery?

Nope, no shelf life, you can keep your ileostomy for the rest of your life, especially as it's an end one, which tend to be permanent anyway (loop ileostomies are the temporary ones).

I presume your rectum is disease-free? Surgeon probably won't do a reversal if it isn't, at least my one won't.

Pro - yeah, but this end ileostomy is not going to be turned into a loop one. The guy was diagnosed with Crohn's out of the blue; he's not getting a j-pouch.

Exactly :p

That's why mine and Duque's rectums' were kept. Not just for the sheer fun of having 'phantom rectum' (nothing brings on those old Crohn's feelings like a sense of urgency and pressure), but for the future possibility of reconnection. Obviously, UC folks can't have an IRA 'cos their disease is always in the rectum, whereas Crohn's often isn't.

Just my luck to have surgery right before a cure is found... >_>

My rectum caused some problems near the end, but it wasn't the major source of trouble. My biggest fear about a reconnection would be the return of anal fissures; they made having a bowel movement, no matter how small or liquid, literally agonising. I could put up with going 6-8x a day, easily, as long as it was painless!

Urgh, not to go too far afield here but IRAs have notoriously poor outcomes in adults. Even if it meant the risk of a stoma revision or two down the road, I would not spring for the IRA.

There *can* be issues aside from active disease that might require follow up surgery. Stoma revisions are not all that uncommon. Scar tissue or kinks in the bowel can cause issues that require surgical correction, or even something as simple as a change in body shape affecting the day to day function of a stoma (e.g. weight gain causing a decent stoma to become too flush to pouch well). There are no guarantees in life and you might someday need a revision, but I think if your objective is to stay out of the OR, you should stick with the ileo.

Actually this group of patients had significantly better functional outcomes with an IRA than an j-pouch.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1420918/

I'd love to see more proof of IRA surgery vs. j-pouch surgery but there's surprisingly little out there.

yeAh IRA sounds good for crohnies.., my surgeon was even planning one if my removed colon showed confirmed crohns (which seemed odd since I always showed pancolitis incl in rectum). I notice that patient datisfaction / function for IRA's is superior to IAA's/jpouch. if for any reason one day I have to a abandon the Ileostomy I am inclined to do BCIR.., but knock on wood my stoma setup works like a champ- I'd describe it as "excellent" not just satisfactory; zero effect on social life , sports, athletics etc.

That's awesome Shaz!!! Your stoma is my stoma's hero!! I can only pray that I am as lucky and blessed as you have been.