Dr. Pho , Is surgery for total colectomy is safety ?

Dear Dr. Pho

I have severe constipation, half year only have a few times, most of the doctor in Hong Kong (not G.I.doctor) not suggesting me to do surgery, they said very dangerous and have severe dirrera, except one surgery doctor, he promised to do surgery (through minimally invasive colon resection approx$35,000 canadian dollar) after seeing me two days without checking my colon and did'nt tell me I may have severe dirrera etc.

I have heard 7 persons died in Hong Kong recently, my brother have 4 friends (2 have colon cancer, 2 have polys) all died after remove the large intestine, and my the other brother read newspaper have 2 patients died too. And I have 1 friend - his friends died.  And, I read newspaper in Hong Kong last year the mortality rate of colon operation is 36% in Hong Kong. What is the mortality rate in your place, and how much they charge, where and is it safety ?

Is  other place is the same mortality rate ? Now, I am living in Calgary, I am very suffered everyday, and I also scared of the severe dirrera,if doing surgery, is it for sure the direrra will be decreased after a few months and end up under 10 times, or most likely have over 10 times for the rest of my lifes.  In H.K., 2 cases from the television, one man and one girl - they have 28 times dirrera per day.  They both want suicide and cannot work and only receive money from government.  I really want to do the surgery, however, I am still very scared about the mortality rate and the bad outcome of the surgery.

I know someone still need diaper and have direrra whenever they eat.  If I am unluckly to have 20 times per day, can it eventually lead to under 10 times per day. What is the percentage have over 20 times per day.

Because I used too many laxatives,the laxatives is unless for me, I went to ER,  the doctor gave me strong laxative (for colonscopy).  If I cannot get rid of the poo, can I still doing surgery safety? Use traditional method or laporoscopic colectomy.




clara345

[Kevin Pho, MD]

I am not a surgeon, so my insight into this question is limited.

That said, under routine circumstances, there is no way that the death rate for a colectomy is over 30 percent.  In general, this is a straightforward operation.  But like any others, there is always the risk of complications, including death.  Bleeding and infection are other risks that should be considered and discussed as well.

I am not familiar with the situation in Hong Kong, so I can't comment as to why the mortality rate is so high there.

As for cost, again that would depend on the extent of the operation, so I can't give a price in this forum.

Also, the health care system in Calgary, Canada should be among the state of the art.  So I'm not sure if there are significant advantages traveling abroad for the procedure.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin Pho, M.D.

KevinMD.com
Twitter.com/kevinmd