What's the Difference?

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tim1948

What is an ileostomy? I have a colostomy?

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The following is an extract from the leaflets I was given before I had my permanent ileostomy:

An ileostomy is an opening (or stoma) of the small bowel onto the abdomen so that the motions then empty into an attached bag. It is performed when all the large bowel has to be removed. This is usually necessary when an inflammatory disease (such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease) seriously damages the large bowel. It is occasionally performed when there is more than one cancerous growth in the large bowel. When it is performed for inflammatory bowel disease, ileostomy may be permanent. On occasion, it may be used in the emergency situation when most of the large bowel is removed but enough is left to allow reconnection of the intestine at a later date.

A colostomy is an opening (or stoma) of the colon or large bowel onto the abdominal wall so that the motions then empty into an attached bag. A colostomy may be permanent or temporary. It is permanent in certain situations with cancerous growths of the rectum. This is because removal of the cancer may mean that there is insufficient rectum (or back passage) left to be joined to the bowel. Temporary colostomies are used as a safety valve to divert the motions away from a newly joined part of the intestine. This gives the new join time to heal. It may also be used in the emergency situation where there may be a blockage of the bowel.

So what that means (to me anyway) is that the output from an ileostomy can be quite loose at times although there are foods which thicken it up (but we always have to wear an open-ended bag - with a closure of course!) whereas colostomy output is more like a regular poop (because you still have your large bowel)!
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gee07
tim1948.
Jo has replied to you with the medical text you may read at some point.
The long and short of it is if you have an ileo., as I have, it is the large bowel (colon) that is taken or part of it taken away, and a stoma in its place. In my case, I had U.C. and all my colon was removed and my tail end closed up. The colon's job was to remove most of the liquid from your foods and absorb the salts, but with the colon gone, it means you will have a watery output and you will need to take salt more as your small bowel won't do the same job. Whatever bowel is left is from that they make the stoma. So if you have a colostomy, then your small bowel was taken away and you are left with the colon and will therefore have a thicker output and less output. The term ileostomy comes from the fact that you are left with the small bowel called ileum, and when you are left with the colon, you have what they call a colostomy.
Hope it helps.
christiesdad

Gee07,
They took my whole colon and called it a colostomy.
gee07
christiesdad,
I know they (medical people) tend to give the word colostomy in general terms to mean a stoma operation.
I'm in the UK and I have had mine ileo., over 41 years and these were the facts I was told by my medical team that did my early op. So all I can say is that was what I was told, that whatever bowel one was left with, it took the remaining bowel name. i.e., as in small bowel left called ileum, therefore ileostomy.
Still makes no difference to the label if you will, the facts are correct in which bowel is removed to its job and output.
 
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