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sub total colectomy - slow transit constipation
After many years of ODS, I was diagnosed last year with slow transit constipation. In June this year i had a sigmoid colectomy for partial sigmoid volvulus. this has helped the obstruction, but since then my bowel has basically stopped working, and is extrememly laxative resistant. Whereas before surgery i could have a bowel movement (although not formed) daily or twice daily with the help of a couple of laxatives and suppositories, and hours in the loo.
I am due 5 tests next year under another consultant. i have been told by my present consultant that subtotal colectomies are a 50/50 risk in that 50 per cent get better, and 50 per cent get diarrohea or become incontinent and require a bag. Is this just this consultants view (he is a professor at a UK hospital), or do people generally fair well after such a procedure?
I am finding it difficult to get any kind of information on the internet as to whether subtotal colectomy is a useful procedure in cases like mine.
thanks for your time i appreciate it.
karen
I am due 5 tests next year under another consultant. i have been told by my present consultant that subtotal colectomies are a 50/50 risk in that 50 per cent get better, and 50 per cent get diarrohea or become incontinent and require a bag. Is this just this consultants view (he is a professor at a UK hospital), or do people generally fair well after such a procedure?
I am finding it difficult to get any kind of information on the internet as to whether subtotal colectomy is a useful procedure in cases like mine.
thanks for your time i appreciate it.
karen
I too was diagnosed with slow transit constipation after much testing.No colectomy,but i do have an ileostomy and I HATE IT!!!!!! It made me worse!! I developed a huge hernia and diversion colitis(colon still intact).I had to go to12 different surgeons and much agony before finding one who has me scheduled for a reversal!! THANK GOD!!! DIVERSION COLITIS is when stool is bypassed from the colon and it gets inflamed,sore and bleeds!!NOT FUN!!! HERNIAS hurt and block up too,so get a few opinions or you may end up even worse!! Any surgery on your colon will have adverse(possibly for the worse)effects on your BMs.So I am not surprised that you are worse off.Maybe you should mention a procedure called ILEORECTAL ANASTAMOSIS to your surg.that is where they remove the colon and staple the sm bowel to the rectum.most people with your condition respond nicely,vs ostomy and complications such as I mentioned.TRUST ME PLEASE!!! I do not want to see anyone suffer as I have.I was also an LPN back in 99,so i have some medical background.Plus my personal experience! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!!!!
I hope this may be of some help to you, although it is a long time since you posted.
I had a sub-total colectomy 5 years ago (bowel cancer). I developed severe sepsis and had another op 3 days later to remove the infection and create a loop ileostomy, which I had for 18 months before reversal. It took that long for me to recover from the sepsis and multiple organ failure, so that I was strong enough mentally and physically for more surgery.
So, 3 1/2 years ago I was essentially at the point I should have been before the sepsis. My small intestine joined to the rectum. It took about a week after the reversal for my bowel to function again - that was fairly painful, and involved lots of laxatives, enemas, an NG tube, but eventually everything started working. The most important advice I think I could give anyone is to be patient. At first I was having to go to the loo 3 or 4 times an hour. Three years on and I go on average 2 to 3 times in 24 hours, sometimes more, sometimes less.
I resumed working although from my home. I am a private teacher. I now travel to students' homes and have no fear of being 'caught short'. I use a cocktail of fibregel for bulk, as I have a lot of diarrohea, norimode to slow down the transit. I don't eat fruit or drink fruit juice and I avoid nuts, mushrooms and sweetcorn as these don't get broken down.
I do get dehydrated a lot and have an electrolyte rehydration drink every day. Dehydration gives me painful leg and foot cramps. I was actually hospitalised a couple of years ago because I had developed acidosis, where the blood becomes acidic because you excrete so much salt. That's something to watch out for. Symptoms - extreme fatigue, weakness, can't sit up or stand up, eventual coma if undiagnosed. The treatment is sodium bicarbonate! Not the sort you cook with; it is in tablet form on prescription (UK)
The other piece of advice I'd offer is to arm yourself with a nappy rash cream. I use conotrane as it is so easily absorbed and has no scent. In fact, in the early days and weeks, my whole perineum area was so inflamed and sore from being wet most of the time that the only thing that I found soothing was to apply cornflour after every BM.
I haven't been able to come up with an answer to the excess gas problem. Maybe someone will be able to help me out with that! I am shortly moving to a house with only one bathroom, so 'noisiness' will be even more obvious and it really embarrasses me....
I hope this has been of some use to you!
I had a sub-total colectomy 5 years ago (bowel cancer). I developed severe sepsis and had another op 3 days later to remove the infection and create a loop ileostomy, which I had for 18 months before reversal. It took that long for me to recover from the sepsis and multiple organ failure, so that I was strong enough mentally and physically for more surgery.
So, 3 1/2 years ago I was essentially at the point I should have been before the sepsis. My small intestine joined to the rectum. It took about a week after the reversal for my bowel to function again - that was fairly painful, and involved lots of laxatives, enemas, an NG tube, but eventually everything started working. The most important advice I think I could give anyone is to be patient. At first I was having to go to the loo 3 or 4 times an hour. Three years on and I go on average 2 to 3 times in 24 hours, sometimes more, sometimes less.
I resumed working although from my home. I am a private teacher. I now travel to students' homes and have no fear of being 'caught short'. I use a cocktail of fibregel for bulk, as I have a lot of diarrohea, norimode to slow down the transit. I don't eat fruit or drink fruit juice and I avoid nuts, mushrooms and sweetcorn as these don't get broken down.
I do get dehydrated a lot and have an electrolyte rehydration drink every day. Dehydration gives me painful leg and foot cramps. I was actually hospitalised a couple of years ago because I had developed acidosis, where the blood becomes acidic because you excrete so much salt. That's something to watch out for. Symptoms - extreme fatigue, weakness, can't sit up or stand up, eventual coma if undiagnosed. The treatment is sodium bicarbonate! Not the sort you cook with; it is in tablet form on prescription (UK)
The other piece of advice I'd offer is to arm yourself with a nappy rash cream. I use conotrane as it is so easily absorbed and has no scent. In fact, in the early days and weeks, my whole perineum area was so inflamed and sore from being wet most of the time that the only thing that I found soothing was to apply cornflour after every BM.
I haven't been able to come up with an answer to the excess gas problem. Maybe someone will be able to help me out with that! I am shortly moving to a house with only one bathroom, so 'noisiness' will be even more obvious and it really embarrasses me....
I hope this has been of some use to you!
Having a subtotal colectomy, how much did they remove? I am not sure what I'm in for yet. I've been suffering chronic constipation for many, many years. After my 2nd pregnancy I became anorexic/bulimic, then began abusing laxatives. This has destroyed my GI system. For the last 20 years I have not had a bm without using laxatives. Every doctor I've seen I've spilled my guts trying to get them to do something to help me get off the laxative use; they'd say, if it works keep doing it. I was shocked because I thought laxatives are harmful, aren't they? Umm, hell yes. But what could I do, nothing else worked, ever! Over the years it has gotten worse and worse. The constipation, bloating, cramping, constant nausea, vomiting, fullness, gas, gas, gas and pain, pain, pain. Many sleepless nights, and many of them on the bathroom floor, back and forth from the toilet not knowing whether or not I'm going to throw up, poop myself, or faint! So tired of living like this. No one could tell me what was wrong. They'd just call it IBS for something to call it. I knew there was much more to it. I've done my own research and diagnosed myself. It has now finally been confirmed by a gastroenterologist that I have colonic inertia after many, many horrible tests I never want to go through again. My doc wants to try one or two more medications, that my insurance company doesn't want to cover (so he's appealing it). If they don't work, my next and last (apparently) option is this surgery. He hasn't said whether he's thinking total or partial removal. I'm pretty anxious about this surgery. Sounds pretty serious and so many people say they have complications. But, I would give anything to be done with this. It's absolute hell living like this, as you all know. My main question is regarding life after surgery... were you all able to return to work and live a normal life? Do you have such urgency that prevents you from holding down a job? Do you suffer any incontinence? Anything you'd like to share about your experience, your recovery would be helpful and much appreciated! God bless you all!!
I had a subtotal colectomy and ileorectal anastomis on the 1st april this year.
I am so pleased with the results, I don't get diarrhea, I have a bm between 6-10 times a day(quite solid) and I can eat what Ilike, although I have not tried mushrooms or nuts yet(they can cause blockages)I am still slightly swollen and waiting for my waistline to reappear, I will never regret have the op
I am so pleased with the results, I don't get diarrhea, I have a bm between 6-10 times a day(quite solid) and I can eat what Ilike, although I have not tried mushrooms or nuts yet(they can cause blockages)I am still slightly swollen and waiting for my waistline to reappear, I will never regret have the op
I came to this site to check on post op subtotal colectomy's cuz my friend is about to have one. I am an RN and more importantly I am a Christian.
Don't despair! Check out Dan Mohler on youtube. Any of his videos will teach you about what Jesus Christ did for you and me. He gave his life so you wouldn't have to be sick or die!! It's truly a gift unimaginable! Also, I have taken many herbs from Dr. Schultz and they WORK! So many people have gone to him with terminal illnesses and after doing his cleanses are healed!
I can teach you about the finished work of Jesus Christ. It's all about him and not you and me! GIve your life to him and ask him for healing. He is a loving Savior and God loves you!
Praying for you,
Pam B.
Don't despair! Check out Dan Mohler on youtube. Any of his videos will teach you about what Jesus Christ did for you and me. He gave his life so you wouldn't have to be sick or die!! It's truly a gift unimaginable! Also, I have taken many herbs from Dr. Schultz and they WORK! So many people have gone to him with terminal illnesses and after doing his cleanses are healed!
I can teach you about the finished work of Jesus Christ. It's all about him and not you and me! GIve your life to him and ask him for healing. He is a loving Savior and God loves you!
Praying for you,
Pam B.
From reading everyone's posts I find myself in a frightful position, I have been suffering from syptoms for years,but the last 5 have gotten progressively worse to the point that I don't have bowel movements for days, laxatives don't work and the nausea is horrible and then when my bowel finally empties I am in pain from the boating etc.. What concerns me most after reading everyone's posts and the potential of loosing the colon or parts comes down to this, back in 2008 because doctors had me convinced I was just fat d severely constipated and I felt like I was drowning in my own fluids, I went ahead with a laparoscopic Gastric Bypass RNY. It was at that time my surgeon performed the procedure found a judge tumor,the size of a full term pregnancy that was crushing everything in sight. He was more than qualified to remove it but didn't and instead of not going through with the Gastric bypass pulled up my small intestine making me much worse. My start weight was 270 in less than 3 months not including the tumor I had lost more than 100 pounds. You would to without surgery if more than a baby spoon full of food was all you could eat. Drinking liquids wasn't much better. For months I was lucky if 8 ounces of fluid passed my lips. I spint mst of the time in bed. Sought the help of several other "surgeons and specialist" but was blown off. Iat that point I sleep most of my life away it was 10 months after the Rny that on a post op visit to the Gastric bypass surgeon that everything started shutting down, went into seizures that wouldn't stop, I was scanned so much in the hospital that I could glow in the dark. It wasn't until a Urology surgeon came into see me about my kidneys, he would be putting stents in until I could get the abdominal tumor removed. He was trying to give me hope that once the tumor was removed in tme my kidneys would start working properly. Well, next thing I new, I was scheduled for tumor removal, no stents were put into place. I wish I could say that was the silver lining and have fully functioning intestines, large and small, and bladder function but that was the tip of the iceberg. Now what part of my intestines that still have some function it constantly twists and fills with gas in attempt to evacuate. My rectum is displaced, my colon is damaged as is most of my small intestine. I am trying to get to see a specialist, but its hard to do, when you don't have insurance, can't work and are bed ridden most days. Don't have enough recent work credits for disability or trying to get SSI some money is better than none, but my records and my doctors conveniently went missing. I am living with my parents right now who themselves are on a fixed income with their own health issues, I am afraid that with all the intestinal problems I'll end up having most everything removed. I am so tired of being ill, but I don't think I could handle losing everything. I have even asked God for a total healing, but if its not to be, to let me die soon. I am not living, just barely existing. What makes me so angry, was 12 years ago when I had terrific health insurance my issues could have been addressed but wasn't. I am sorry for blabbering so long. I don't know what to think at this point. If anyone from around the midatlantic region upper south knows of any good specialist or have advice on where to go from here, I would be so appreciative.
Hi im due a total colectomy in a month, due to slow transit constipation that has bn a prblem foreva!! im 34 and now 6stne10 with bmi of 15,, not good,
will my probs bloating go away after the op?? and hw long does it take for operation swelling to go down, im havn laparoscopy colectomy, any info would b aprreciated thanks
will my probs bloating go away after the op?? and hw long does it take for operation swelling to go down, im havn laparoscopy colectomy, any info would b aprreciated thanks
Hello.... thought that I'd give an update... May 28th i had surgery to remove my large colon. During the surgery, the doctor found that a hernia mesh (2002) had adhered itself to my small intestines and she had to remove that portion as well. What a mess. I seem to be recovering ok....anyone words of wisdom on how long this recovery process is going to take?
How did the subtotal colectomy work out for you? I was diagnosed in December with slow transit constipation. This seemed to happen after I had a couple instances where I had partial bowel obstructions. The doctor suggests that I have my large colon removed. YIKES!!! I am worried about complications and I would like to know how others have gotten through this. I have lost over 50 lbs... and eating anything comes with a price. Right now, I schedule a bowel movement once or twice a week by loading up on Miralax and docolax. My gut, under my ribs and lower back is often painful. When that extreme full feeling comes on, I now get heartburn and the feeling that things are coming up instead of going down. Extremely frustrating..... but I am concerned about having surgery. Please share your experiences... Thanks.
Thanks for your comments - it has really helped me feel a lot better about the future. do you have much large bowel left over? kind regards. k
Hi- I just stumbled upon this site, but I wanted to share my experience. I too suffered for many years with slow transit constipation, which lead to many hospital admissions and miserable days. I too had a sigmoid colectomy with ceopexy and continued to suffer for the next year and a half afterward. I finally decided to go through with a subtotal colectomy-I have about 8 cm of rectum. (ileorectal anastomosis). I have never felt better. I eat without any problems, no issues with incontinence whatsoever. Everything seems better, from my GI tract to my skin. I will leave my email since I do not frequent this site, but I'm happy to share my thoughts to those who need an ear. All the best, Chasity. ***@****
well I will just have to go back to doing enemas LOL!! I have to do them now anyways with short chain fatty acids for this awful diversion colits. OH WELL, maybe some day they will find a cure?? But I do not want to be incontinent either,so I guess dealing with enemas is better then a hernia that hurts like aSOB or feeling like someone took a cheesegrater to your colon.I have a stent in my sigmoid colon,and they think that may have an impact on the slow transit,as it seems to be stimulating it to want to move LOL!! I had a bad stricture in the lower colon,that is why the stent is there now. But I am definately looking forward to surgery in january!!! NO MORE BAG!!!!! HURRAY!!!
Thanks for your comments. I have never heard of diversion colitis.
Yes, I have had opinions from 3 consultants. two out of three say subtotal colectomy is the only way forward - that is where they remove most of the large bowel, then attaching the sm bowel to the end, but leaving about a foot intact with the rectum. the only problem i was told is that if you take too little away, you are left no different, and if too much is removed you end up incontinent. i will have to see what my present consultant says after tests next year - thats how long it takes to wait over here...
I am sorry for your awful plight - you are so young too - i am 45 but had ibs type problems since my mid 30's. glad your mood is 'happy' today... What are you going to do about your slow transit - seeing as they are going to stick it back together again??
Yes, I have had opinions from 3 consultants. two out of three say subtotal colectomy is the only way forward - that is where they remove most of the large bowel, then attaching the sm bowel to the end, but leaving about a foot intact with the rectum. the only problem i was told is that if you take too little away, you are left no different, and if too much is removed you end up incontinent. i will have to see what my present consultant says after tests next year - thats how long it takes to wait over here...
I am sorry for your awful plight - you are so young too - i am 45 but had ibs type problems since my mid 30's. glad your mood is 'happy' today... What are you going to do about your slow transit - seeing as they are going to stick it back together again??
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