Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Gastroenterology (Expert Forum)
upcoming Spincterotomy
This forum is for questions regarding Gastroenterology issues such as Acid Reflux (GERD), Barretts Esophagus, Colitis, Colon/Bowel Disorders, Crohn's Disease, Diverticulitis/Diverticulosis, Digestive Disorders, IBS, Stomach Pain.
 |
upcoming Spincterotomy
by tommy_t, Mar 17, 2002 12:00AM
this surgery is scheduled for 3/19 any info would be appreciated. i have fissures, internal hemmoroids, and a recent barium scan shows diverticulosis. i had fissure surgery about 30 years ago also gallbladder was removed a year ago. i have had BM problems for years but since the GB surgery it's even worse. when i told my surgeon about diarrhea almost immediately after eating all he could say was "i heard that" didn't even have enough sense to refer me to my primary care MD. i am concerned the spincterotomy will cause more problems. any comments welcome. thanks
Member Comments (12)
by Baseball_Mom, Mar 17, 2002 12:00AM
Hi - Are you having a Sphincterotomy or a Sphincteroplasty? I'm having the same problems you describe. I go in the hospital tomorrow for a Sphincteroplasty and Perineoplasty. I have to have this surgery because two years ago I had emergency surgery for a perianal cyst and we have now discovered that the general surgeon cut my front muscles. My back rectum muscles have compensated for as long as they can. I too had my gallbladder out which made my bowels worse. My surgery is at 12:30p tomorrow (3/18). I am suppose to be in the hospital for a minimum of 3 days and be out of work 4 to 6 weeks. I just had a rectal seal replacement and hemmrhoidectomy on February 1st, so you can imagine how anxious I am to have this done tomorrow. Hope this information helps and best of luck to you. Are you having a colon/rectal specialist perform your surgery? I would highly recommend that you do if you are not. Take care!
by tommy_t, Mar 17, 2002 12:00AM
thanks for the reply sounds like you've had quite a time. my primary md referred me to a specailist he uses for these problems. he treated me medically with suppositories, pain cream, and even nitro paste. seemed to be ok for awhile but pain came back. turns out the specialist is a general surgeon but only operates 1 day a week, i think only in that area. he wanted me to have a colonoscopy to check for cancer before he would do the spinterotomy (he described it as simply knicking the spinter muscle, it's same day 20-30 min, general anestia) but settled for the barium scan. even though it's a simple operation i'm a bit concerned with all the BM problems i've had for years, i keep thinking i'm going to not be able to control my bowels and end up with a bag, it's scary. my prayers are with you. thanks again.
by Baseball_Mom, Mar 17, 2002 12:00AM
To: Tommy_T
Hi - If the surgeon "knows what he is doing" you will do just fine. I'm concerned that he wants to "knick" the muscle. You see that is my problem. When I had the perianal cyst removed the General Surgeon cut into my muscle and that is why I'm having my muscle repaired tomorrow. Obviously you don't have to worry about a Perineoplasty because only woman have this done. If you feel comfortable with the surgeon than I think you should have it done. However, not meaning to scare you, if he "knicks" too much of your muscle you could quite possibly have fecal incontenence, which unfortunately is what is wrong with me. The good news is this can be fixed with a Sphincteroplasty. I've been told in this day and time that a colostomy bag is a last resort. Sometimes they have to temporarily put one in reroute things, but as a general rule they are not necessary. Best of luck to you. Hope your doctor gets you fixed up. Take care!
by tommy_t, Mar 17, 2002 12:00AM
To: Baseball_Mom
thanks much hope all goes well for you also, lets compare notes when were both on the mend. thanks again.
by Baseball_Mom, Mar 21, 2002 12:00AM
To: Tommy_T
Hi - I just got home from the hospital this afternoon. The doctor seems to think he fixed things this time. Other than being really sore (but pain killers help) I feel pretty good. Hope your procedure did well. Let me know how you are doing.
by individual, Mar 23, 2002 12:00AM
To: baseball mom § tommy-t
Baseball mom, I'm glad things went well for you. Tommy, I hope yours went well also. I am hopefully going to have surgery soon. I know no one hopes to have surgery just for the sake of it. It has taken me 4 years to find a doctor (even gastrointerologists) who had a clue about my problem. My symptoms are mostly incontinency of gas, but since I also have a rectocele I occasionally have stool leakage. My Naturopathe suggested that having large babbies can cause complications. I went to my gynecologist who agreed, and refered me to a colorectal surgeon. I visited some websites and found a lot of information about chidbirth complications. Large babies, the use of forceps, and epesiotomies were listed as possible causes to these complications, and I had all three. I have had several tests done, and am going in on 4-1 to have a very extensive test done. This test will determine exactly how much damage there is and if it is repairable. I have some hope now, but I'm afraid that it might not be repairable, and that scares me.
by individual, Mar 23, 2002 12:00AM
To: baseball mom
I forgot to ask this question: did your rectocele cause you pain? I have pain at night sometimes that wakes me up from a dead sleep. I have to take 6 ibuprophen and I can go back to sleep after about an hour. Also, once your doctor decided to operate how long did you have to wait for your surgery, and how in the world do you ever sit at the computer?!
by Baseball_Mom, Mar 25, 2002 12:00AM
To: Individual
I had to have my rectal seal replacement done because of having a Fistula that never healed properly. Instead of healing completely over it healed in a concaved shape. Therefore when I would have bowel movements they would be funneled to the vaginal area. I didn't have any pain associated with this, it was just very annoying. I had surgery for this and hemmrhoidectomy on the 1st of February. Went back to work on the 6th of March and back into surgery on the 18th for my sphinceteroplasty/perineoplasy. In answer to your question, I saw the Colon/Rectal specialist on the 15th of January and like I said had surgery Feb 1. So I didn't have to wait too long. My second surgery, I saw the doctor on the 5th of March and operated on the 18th. And how do I sit at a computer??? I don't, I lay across my bed with a laptop and correspond that way. Best of luck to you. Let me know if you need any other questions answered. Take care!
by individual, Mar 26, 2002 12:00AM
To: baseball mom
Did a colorectal surgeon perform your first surgery? I'm not quite familiar with the second surgery you had. Was it the result of something gone wrong with the first one? My doctor thinks that my sphincter muscles may have separated, and that's why gas leaks out. My problem is bad enough, but I think it would be much worse to have a fistula. I work very closely with kids of all ages, and the gas problem is humiliating. Kids don't usually understand things like this. They think it's all just gross. I have had to tell a few of them, but I don't want to tell the whole world. I can't wait until I have a solution.
by tommy_t