I guess I would ask your surgeon why he/she left part of your colon? I thought the standard treatment for colonic inertia is to remove the entire colon and hook the small intestine up to the rectum.
As for your back pain, this could be caused by the awkward position the body is positioned during surgery. I had the same pain although it was addressed in the hospital with an IV or Toridal, the most heavy of anti-inflammatories. In fact the drug is so potent that a patient can not be on it for more than 48 hours.
You might need to see a doctor about getting an Rx for the back pain, most likely go back to your surgeon.
Sue
dx proctitis in 1987
~ I AM SO GLAD I FOUND THIS SITE AND SEE I AM NOT ALONE AS I THOUGHT I WAS......WHAT STRANGE POSITION DO THEY PUT YOU IN? I WAS SLEEPING AND THEY NEVER TOLD ME LOL.
Well I saw a video of someone's proctocoletomy and it showed the body in a jack knife position but face up. In other words, not a natural position for the body!
I think you are still getting constipated because you still have a small amount of colon. From what I understand about CI, the colon just does not work PERIOD. For me, I would still have ulcerative colitis if the surgeon left even an inch of my offending colon! I think you should ask your surgeon (was it a colo-rectal surgeon?) the reason behind keeping a partial colon. Isn't the idea to have surgery to get off medication?
Sue
dx proctitis in 1987
anyway besides not moveing things along i didnt get any of the other normal sensations either. I am not sure the path i took was the right one and i am not pleased that I may have to consider another major surgury. I have had 3 major ones and 10 or so dilitations so i am getting to my witts end. so let me ask you this or anyone that knows...when they hook up the small intestines to the rectum do u have good control?
I have excellent control, just got back from a 100 mile hike in Scotland! I don't have chronic diarrhea, I think there is some misconception in the medical field about what life is like post proctocolectomy. My GI was not in favor of my surgery for this reason, he thought I would have chronic diarrhea. Far from it!
I kind of figured someone other than a colorectal surgeon performed your surgery because I don't think a CR surgeon would have left any colon behind. Is it possible that you can get referred to a good CR surgeon for follow-up? After all, they are the specialists in colonic inertia surgery and know the standard procedure of treatment. I hate to see you have another surgery but it will solve your problem.
Sue
dx proctitis in 1987
My hydration is not different post colon. I drink a large cup of coffee in the morning and don't drink again until 4pm where I will have some water. I do take Gookinaid Hydralyte (the best hydrating beverage) with me if I am going to be doing 4+ hours of strenous hiking, if not water does the trick. In extreme heat I pay attention to eating more salty foods so that I retain more water. I recommend that you visit www.j-pouch.org and ask the board for a good CR surgeon in your area.
Sue
dx proctitis in 1987
dx proctitis in 1987