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Bloating and surgical wraps
I was found to have many adhesions stuck to almost every abdominal organ making my surgery miserable for my surgeon. He lysed them and wrapped them in ?something. Do the wrappings disolve? I've noticed increasing abdominal pain again with constipation/diarrhea and bloating. Does the bowel get hung up on these? Can they reattach to other organs again causing severe pain? I take high dose Morphine and Dilaudid...if I'm feeling the pain through that is it more serious?
Adhesions generally don't show up on imaging studies. If they cause a bowel obstruction, that will show up of course. Scans that show organs in a place other than expected would also cause a doctor to consider adhesions as the problem. This happens a lot with ovaries and even the bladder. Right now we just don't have the technology for decent diagnostic tests so docs have to go on patient history, symptoms and gut instinct.
There's no way of telling if adhesions will be a problem for you going forward. Some people have a belly full of them and never have symptoms. Others might have a couple strands that cause a full bowel obstruction. Much depends on what structures scar tissue decides to form on, and if that scar tissue adheres them in waysthat will cause trouble.
When you have abominal disease, injury or surgery, it causes inflammation. That causes scar tissue to form and it's a normal part of healing. When this tissue begins to form, it's soft and filmy and you don't even know it's there. As it ages it can become very hard and rope-like. That's when it tends to make it's presence known. I've had symptoms return as soon as two weeks after adheliolysis, and other times maybe a good 6 months. I kept pushing for more surgery because I was trying to continue my career and "normal" life. Finally, I couldn't do it anymore and now surgery is out of the question unless I'm fully obstructed. There's just no way to predict if a patient will be prone to adhesions or not.
There was a study done a few years ago with the cox-II inhibitor, Celebrex. It was given to surgical patients for a week or two before surgery and a couple weeks after. Apparently the results were promising in that it helped keep inflammation down enough to help prevent too much scar tissue from forming. Then Celebrex and other cox-II's came under fire and I never heard any more about it. You might see if you can find something about the study online and discuss it with your doctor. Unless there is some reason you can't take a cox-II inhibitor (anti-inflammatory medication) then it might be worth a try with your upcoming surgery.
I cringed reading about what you need to have done on top of everything else. Do let us know how it goes for you, and the very best of luck for a good outcome. :-)
There's no way of telling if adhesions will be a problem for you going forward. Some people have a belly full of them and never have symptoms. Others might have a couple strands that cause a full bowel obstruction. Much depends on what structures scar tissue decides to form on, and if that scar tissue adheres them in waysthat will cause trouble.
When you have abominal disease, injury or surgery, it causes inflammation. That causes scar tissue to form and it's a normal part of healing. When this tissue begins to form, it's soft and filmy and you don't even know it's there. As it ages it can become very hard and rope-like. That's when it tends to make it's presence known. I've had symptoms return as soon as two weeks after adheliolysis, and other times maybe a good 6 months. I kept pushing for more surgery because I was trying to continue my career and "normal" life. Finally, I couldn't do it anymore and now surgery is out of the question unless I'm fully obstructed. There's just no way to predict if a patient will be prone to adhesions or not.
There was a study done a few years ago with the cox-II inhibitor, Celebrex. It was given to surgical patients for a week or two before surgery and a couple weeks after. Apparently the results were promising in that it helped keep inflammation down enough to help prevent too much scar tissue from forming. Then Celebrex and other cox-II's came under fire and I never heard any more about it. You might see if you can find something about the study online and discuss it with your doctor. Unless there is some reason you can't take a cox-II inhibitor (anti-inflammatory medication) then it might be worth a try with your upcoming surgery.
I cringed reading about what you need to have done on top of everything else. Do let us know how it goes for you, and the very best of luck for a good outcome. :-)
OMG u poor thing. It is a horrible pain, I have had 3 open ups and so far have only had to have 1 adhesion surgery. That was only 2 mths after my major surgery. I havent found anything useful that deals with adhesion pain. I have the usual constant pain but at times it feels like its pulling, just for a sec but really hurts. I have another surgery coming up which of course puts me at more risk for getting adhesions. Can they see adhesions on scans etc???? For my next surgery I am having a completion colectomy with a defunctioning loop ileostomy. The dr says if I have adhesions already there it may change the surgery plan. I only have sml bowel left apart from 28cm of lge remaining. I wonder what happens when u get older, I mean will I have to have adhesions done every 2 yrs?????? Im sorry to hear bout ur case Kathy, that really sux. They should invent an anti adhesion medication, sometimes our bodies do silly things.
Hello Nita, I am sorry you are in so much pain & discomfort. I am unable to answer your ? about the dissolving of the wrappings your surgeon used. I have read that certain products do dissolve. If you haven't called yr doc I would urge you to consider that option. Pain control is an important factor in asessing yr physical condition. Its important not to mask symptoms with pain pills..For your peace of mind, if you found out the name of the product your dr. used then you would be able to quickly search it on the 'net & ascertain if the product is supposed to dissolve. From your description of your adhesions & my personal experience with recurrent abdominal adhesions over the last 36 years it could be that adhesions may have reformed & yes they can reattach to organs causing pain. The adhesions can pull organs down affecting nerves or they can wrap around a segment of the colon affecting how it works mechanically. I am currently enduring a miserable siege with abdominal adhesions that started in Aug. I have had 8 surgeries & been hospitalized probably more than 20 times for probs associated with adhesions. The pain is so constant & excruciating it can really get to me. I have found soaks in a warm bath with lavender bath oil, soft music & herb tea can be soothing.. For additional information about adhesions, I just started searching the 'net last night (10/13) & found a bundle of quality info that may be helpful. Let us know how you are doing. I care This is my 1st post. Kathy
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