About

Stomas connect an internal diversion to the outside of the body. They get their names based on their anatomic location, such as colostomy, ileostomy, or urostomy. A colostomy is a surgical procedure aimed at the exteriorization of the large intestine using a stoma.

A colostomy can be a loop colostomy or an end colostomy. The surgeon creates a loop colostomy by creating an opening on the side of the colon and pulling that side out of the belly through an incision. This type of colostomy is generally temporary. An end colostomy, on the other hand, involves a proximal end of the colon brought through the abdominal wall. The rest of the colon is either removed or rested.

The surgical procedure involved in the creation of a loop colostomy is simpler than an end colostomy. It is less complicated and less painful, and you are not going to have to stay in the hospital for many days after surgery. The doctor may choose to create a loop colostomy:

To treat obstruction, which happens as a result of a grown rectal cancer
To divert the stool away from the newly treated area of the colon

Pre-procedural planning

The location of the stoma has to be precise. If it is not, it can be a source of patient dissatisfaction and extensive morbidity after surgery. The preoperative marking of the stoma allows the nurse to make sure that the stoma, after its formation, will make it easy for the patient to manage the ostomy pouch.

Key points that you will have to keep in mind regarding the marking of the stoma may include the following.

The patient has to be awake during the stoma marking.
The patient is asked to sit, bend, lie down, and stand up. The nurse makes sure that the site of the stoma remains in an appropriate location in each body posture.
The nurse also calculates the body-mass index. The weight of the body has a lot to do with how the stoma will behave after surgery.

Making of the opening

There are different surgical approaches that a surgeon has to consider to create a loop colostomy. Those approaches can be categorized as:

Open
Laparoscopic
Trephine- or colonoscopy-assisted

The surgical techniques to create a loop colostomy have evolved significantly over the past decade. It may be worth mentioning here that a loop colostomy is a relatively simple procedure that results in a temporary stoma. Doctors create it with an intention to reverse it at a later date.

Although loop colostomy is temporary, it doesn’t make the proper ostomy care less necessary. The fact of the matter is that the prospects of the diseased part of your colon are high when you ensure the best bowel health and take care of your stoma and the skin around it.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse