Unattached ascending colon

[rere13]

Is there any doctor that has performed surgery to reattach a floppy ascending colon and cecum?  Is this a bad idea or a surgery that would prevent a volvulus or cecal bascule? My 13 year old daughter has this condition.  She has distention, intermittent pain, constipation, bile reflux, and nausea. Her cecum and appendix have been seen in the upper left quadrant, center and high in the abdomen and in the lower left quadrant but upside down on xrays during upper GI series and lower bowel tests.  We have had consults with several surgeons...two said not to perform surgery and one said the ascending colon should be tacked. He suggests laparoscopic surgery.  We have been told that the symptoms may not be related to her anatomy problem.  Her quality of life and academics have been affected.  We are confused and very concerned.  Has anyone ever heard of this?

[survivor68]

I see that this was posted several years ago, but I am curious of the outcome of your daughter's surgery and/or treatment.  When I was an infant, I had the worst colic of any baby my mom had ever seen.  When I was a teenager, I had stomach pain that seemed to have no source and would come out of nowhere.  No one seemed to believe me.  In college, they told me I had IBS and to stick to a high-fiber diet.  The problem was, foods high in fiber put me in MISERY--the slightest gas would put me in bed for hours, but they kept telling me the same thing over and over.  I figured this must be the way life is going to be, until 4 years ago, right before my 39th birthday.  I was at work and became extremely nauseous and had a lot of abdominal pain.  It was extremely alarming, so I went to urgent care and they were concerned enough to order a CT scan.  They said it was constipation and sent me home.  I KNEW it was not just constipation, but I went home and stayed home the next day.  The day after that, I went back to work and was double over within an hour.  I went back to urgent care and they did another CT.  This time, my colon did not move back into place as it apparently had two days earlier.  My appendix was up near my stomach.  My colon had actually folded (thank God not twisted).  They considered the idea of removing my appendix, which would cause the colon to somehow stick, I guess by adhesions.  (???)  Then he consulted with some other doctors and decided that the best thing was to remove my ascending colon.  It sounded extreme, but with me being so young, there was no way to know if my active lifestyle would cause it to break free again.  I had the surgery 2 weeks later.  The recovery was extreme, because although it was laproscopic, they ended up having to make a 2-inch incision where they removed the section and reattached my small intestine.  
I'm happy to say, that I can eat veggies, whole grains, salads, etc. with no pain.  The only issues I have had is that it is sometimes hard to control my bowels (when I have to go I HAVE TO GO!), and I had some adhesions removed 2 years ago that were squeezing my intestine.  In spite of that, my quality of life is fantastic.  I just wish there was a way to diagnose this problem earlier.  IBS is not always the answer.  

[michellebricker]

My daughter is 18 years old and has suffered years of abdominal pain related to intestinal malrotation.  At age 16, she underwent a surgical procedure known as the LADDs procedure, however this provided her no true relief.  Her cecum is also seen in a variety of locations.  She has crampy abdominal pain MOST of the time and intermittent bouts of very severe pain in her left lower quadrant. She suffers from constipation, but also has frequent bowel movements.  Its her senior year of high school and I cannot help but feeling like she is being robbed of her childhood!  It seems so unfair to have to consistently struggle with this situation.  We have been told that her symptoms may be unrelated to her anatomy as well, but I find that very hard to believe.  She has been diagnosed with everything from IBS, abdominal migraines, to "it must be a virus".  The latest was a suggestion to see a psychologist!  It's extremely frustrating when you know there is something wrong with your child and you watch them miss out on so much.  We are consulting with a surgeon at Childrens Hospital in Cincinnati, Dr. Alberto Pena.  She is scheduled for surgery March 4th and he intends to "tack up" her ascending colon.  He suggested that this may not relieve her symptoms, but we are desperate for some some kind of answers.  We, too, are very confused and wonder if anyone out there has ever undergone this procedure.