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Proctocolectomy and Colectomy

You may have a lot of questions and concerns if your doctor recommends you to have a proctocolectomy or colectomy. In this article, we will discuss what these procedures are and how they help you improve your lifestyle.

Some intestinal diseases necessitate a patient to have the rectum or a part of the colon removed.

  • The proctocolectomy involves the removal of the colon and rectum.
  • The colectomy involves the removal of the colon.

These surgeries can alleviate Crohn’s disease symptoms permanently, but they result in the altering of the path of your GI tract.

Colectomy

Your doctor will recommend this procedure if your colon is not fit to function and so needs to be removed permanently. The rectum has to be unaffected by Crohn’s disease in this scenario.

  • After removing your colon, the surgeon will connect your ileum or end of the small intestine to the rectum.
  • After the procedure, you will be able to continue to pass out stools through your anus. It means that you will not need to wear an external pouch to manage stool evacuations.

Proctocolectomy

If Crohn’s disease has affected your colon as well as rectum, your doctor may recommend proctocolectomy. A proctocolectomy involves the removal of both the colon and rectum. This way, the patients undergoing this procedure end up having an end ileostomy. To create an ileostomy, the surgeon makes a small incision in the belly through which he pulls the end of the small intestine to create a stoma. You have to wear an ostomy bag over the stoma to manage your stool evacuations.

Patients with ulcerative colitis may speak to their doctors for the creation of an ileoanal reservoir, which eliminates the need of wearing an ostomy bag. This internal pouch is made of the end of the small intestine. The surgeon then fits this internal pouch over the anal canal so that you regain the ability to eliminate bodily wastes through the anus. If you are a patient with Crohn’s disease, you may not be the right candidate for this procedure because the disease can recur in the small intestine.

Here are a few things that you may want to know about proctocolectomy.

  • This procedure generally involves the removal of the colon, rectum, and anus, necessitating you to wear an ostomy bag over the stoma.
  • The end of the small intestine will be pulled through a small incision in the belly to create a stoma.
  • The stoma will be the size of a quarter, and it will be a little protruded from the surface of the abdomen. It will be red or pink, moist, and shiny.
  • You are going to have to wear an ostomy pouching system over the stoma to manage your stool evacuations.
  • Some patients may feel like needing to move their bowels. It happens when the rectum is intact and producing mucus. This phenomenon is known as the phantom rectum.

Living with an ileostomy

Having an ileostomy doesn’t mean that you are going to have to live like a handicapped person. As long as you take care of your stoma and the skin around it, you can live a life like everyone else out there. There may be some diet restrictions at the start, but your doctor will allow you to eat your favorite foods eventually.

If you face any issue regarding how to manage your stoma, you can speak to your ostomy care nurse or doctor.