Anyone had experience with bowel obstructions?

John23 said:

julesio -

My sympathy to your partner!

My intestinal obstructions began around 3.5 to 4 years after
surgery to resect the colon. (They removed 4 or so feet of
colon, and gave me an Ileostomy in 2006).

The obstructions after abdominal surgery are common, and
are most often due to adhesions (and/or hernias). The adhesions
are the most common, since it is the body's normal way to heal.

Surgery to remove an adhesion or hernia usually results in
more adhesions and hernias. It's for that reason, that most
surgeons will back away from doing a "repair" for any temporary,
or "partial obstruction" whenever it's possible to do so.

I suffered from temporary obstructions for quite some time,
eliminating various food items, etc, in an effort to avoid another
obstruction. The situation continued to get worse (as they
always do), with the "partial obstruction" becoming total but
temporary, and finally to a total obstruction that required
hospitalization, and that infamous NG tube etc....

The surgery was to take about two hours, with about a week's
stay in recovery. The surgery actually went across four days,
with four surgeries, a loss of 1/2 my small intestine, and the
placement of a new ileostomy (leaving the old ileo still intact
and spewing intestinal mucous), a worsening of future adhesions,
a few hernias that will continue to grow in size, and more....

The loss of intestines makes it nearly impossible to stay hydrated
without a PICC (IV) line and bottles of hydration fluid taken
daily. The absorption of vitamins, minerals, etc are also impaired.
And no, there is no "cure" for all of that, unless one considers
death a "cure". It -will- get worse, they tell me.

And since (they said) that my intestines are so fused together
from adhesions (it looks like a white mat under the skin), that
any future operations may cost me the remaining intestines, or
be fatal.

And the good news? No word as yet, but if/when I get some,
I'll share it with you!

So as far as your partner?

Throwing medications at a physical problem will not resolve
the physical problem. It may take away some of the pain,
and the obstruction may clear eventually, but the problem
that is causing the obstruction will continue to get worse.

Some patients undergo surgery to repair an adhesion, and
fare much better than I have. It depends on many factors,
most of what will not be known until surgery. Scans, X-Rays,
Sonograms, etc., can help with a rough diagnosis of the
location of the obstruction, but only open surgery will suffice
for the most detailed view.

Your partner may very well be one of the luckier ones, so
don't take "doom" to the bank quite yet. But it's best to know
what the worst case scenario is, and how common that scenario
is, than to be blind-sided from not knowing reality and preparing
for it.

It is most important to have a qualified Colorectal surgeon
with plenty of experience for the surgery. There are special
"packing and fillings" that can be used during surgery, to help
prevent future adhesions. If they had taken those measures
with my first surgery, I may not have had to suffer these
consequences; No guarantees, but it might have prevented
this mess I have.

So, aside from scaring the bejesus out of you, did any of that
dialog help?

(I hope so).

My very best hopes and wishes for your partner, and you!

John