Help with problems after ileostomy reversal

davidsonxx
davidsonxx Member Posts: 134
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
I debated about posting this but I figured ya'll have been there and would understand. So here goes.

I had my ileostomy reversed on April 16th and am doing well overall but I have 2 problems. I have an anal fissure that just doesn't want to heal. I have some supositories from my dr that help but every time I think it's getting better it gets worse again.

The second problem is that I've been really gassy since the reversal. It doesn't seem to be related to my diet since it is pretty constant regardless of what I eat. I do pretty good with the poop part but have a real problem controlling the gas.

Anybody got any suggestions how to help either problem? I've gone back to work and both of these are driving me crazy.

Comments

  • goldfinch
    goldfinch Member Posts: 735
    #2
    I tried many things to help with my anal fissure. It lasted months. I even tried botox injection. I DON"T recommend that. It didn't help and it caused stool incontinence which persists to this day if chemo is bad.
    The one thing that i think did the most was nifedipine gel.
    The first time I tried it it didn't work, but it was so painful I wasn't able to get any of it on the fissure or surrounding skin. Finally when I tried it again I got some lidocaine gel to numb it a little and then put on the nifedipine gel.
    When you ask your doc for it, you need to know that it is a compounded med. It is nifedipine gel 0.2%. Nefidipine gel is available as a 2% solution, but that is for BP control, not for local treatment of anal fissure. This worked very well for me. I think you can even have them compound it with lidocaine. I was lucky because I have a compounding pharmacy right across from where I work. They can be hard to find. I think I took vit B6 also. Oh and of course hot baths helped a lot, but that may be tough this time of year.

    I can't remember doing anything about the gassiness. I think it was just a matter of time ...a year or so...before i noticed things were better. I was too busy dealing with the fissure.
    I wonder, though, if probiotics, like those found in yogurt might not help.
    Mary
  • davidsonxx
    davidsonxx Member Posts: 134
    #3
    goldfinch said:

    I tried many things to help with my anal fissure. It lasted months. I even tried botox injection. I DON"T recommend that. It didn't help and it caused stool incontinence which persists to this day if chemo is bad.
    The one thing that i think did the most was nifedipine gel.
    The first time I tried it it didn't work, but it was so painful I wasn't able to get any of it on the fissure or surrounding skin. Finally when I tried it again I got some lidocaine gel to numb it a little and then put on the nifedipine gel.
    When you ask your doc for it, you need to know that it is a compounded med. It is nifedipine gel 0.2%. Nefidipine gel is available as a 2% solution, but that is for BP control, not for local treatment of anal fissure. This worked very well for me. I think you can even have them compound it with lidocaine. I was lucky because I have a compounding pharmacy right across from where I work. They can be hard to find. I think I took vit B6 also. Oh and of course hot baths helped a lot, but that may be tough this time of year.

    I can't remember doing anything about the gassiness. I think it was just a matter of time ...a year or so...before i noticed things were better. I was too busy dealing with the fissure.
    I wonder, though, if probiotics, like those found in yogurt might not help.
    Mary

    Thanks, I'll ask my dr about it.

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