Stoma Tracker

[presentlyk]

Tips To Care For Your Colostomy Pouch

Good quality of life with an ostomy almost entirely depends on how well you take care of your pouch and stoma.

The good thing about a colostomy is that it treats the chronic condition that could have painful for your entire life. You may have to undergo a colostomy procedure if you face conditions like bowel cancer, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease. A colostomy provides instant and permanent relief from painful and life-threatening symptoms of such conditions. This surgery, however, brings a significant change in your lifestyle. You will need to take care of your stoma and the ostomy pouch that you wear to manage your stool evacuations.

The surgeon will create a stoma after removing a part of your colon. The stoma is the end of the healthy part of the bowel, sticking out on the abdomen. It is the opening of the bowel diversion that your surgeon creates to bypass the removed or rested section of the bowel. The waste materials pass out of the stoma and store into an ostomy bag fitted over the stoma. During your hospital stay, your ostomy care nurse will teach you how to use and take care of your ostomy pouch.

Caring for your colostomy pouch

The two parts of an ostomy pouch include a skin barrier, also known as a flange, and a pouch. The flange has an opening that fits over the stoma, allowing the stoma to open into the pouch. It may be overwhelming to manage a pouch at first, but it gets easier with time. The following tips may be helpful in this regard.

Use the right ostomy pouch: Finding the right pouch and skin barrier is the first step in your ostomy care regimen. It is crucial to make sure that the flange’s opening is neither too narrow nor too large. A too-narrow opening will cause injury to your stoma, and a too-large opening will cause leakage. With the availability of several types of ostomy pouches, you should be able to pick one that fits your requirements well.

Changing the pouch: Typically, you will need to change your pouch and skin barrier every three to five days, depending on the type of ostomy pouch you use. You will need to change the ostomy appliance immediately if the leakage occurs. Certain other factors, such as burning in the peristomal skin and humidity may also lead you to need to change the pouch sooner.

Shaving around the stoma: Shaving hair around the stoma makes it easier for you to apply and remove the skin barrier. With hair around the stoma, pulling the skin barrier becomes painful. The presence of hair also results in small tunnels under the skin barrier to cause leakage. You may want to shave this area using an electric shaver. You may not want to use a razor unless you are sure that you will not end up having a cut in this part of the skin.

Extra supplies: Having a colostomy wouldn’t stop you from traveling and going anywhere you want. You may have to pay attention to the number of supplies you need to carry, though. Keep in mind the emergency situations in which you may be at the risk of running short on supplies. Carry extra supplies keeping those situations into consideration.

You will need to be patient to adapt to life with a colostomy. It will take some time, but you will thank yourself for the best decision that you have made to stop living under the influence of the chronic condition.

[presentlyk]

Role of the Home Health Care in Colostomy Patient's Care

Many colostomy patients want health care at their homes. Sometimes, patients do not know about the healthy stoma, or they cannot change their ostomy pouching system. Such people need help and a caregiver. Being a home health caregiver, we understand the problems of the colostomy persons, their needs, and maintaining a healthy opening. Here are some suggestions and guidelines for people who take care of their ostomy life on their own. By scanning this article, you will know how a home health caregiver changes the pouching system and maintains a healthy. You can adopt these tactics and enjoy a happy and healthy colostomy life.

First, we shall discuss the colostomy. It is a common kind of ostomy surgery. It fabricates a circular hole in the abdomen of the patient, called a stoma. This appears on the lower left side of the belly button. The reason behind the formation of the stoma is the removal of the infected section of the colon or large intestine. When a patient's bowel or large intestine does not work accurately due to an infection or a chronic disease, then that person needs colostomy. The illness specifically belongs to the large intestine or colon. There could be any reason for the removal of the colon and there are colon cancer, rectum cancer, anal infection, an injury in the colon, blockage in the colon, Crohn’s disease, bowel obstruction, a birth defect, diverticulitis, and inflammatory bowel disease. Thus, doctors perform colostomy to enhance the quality of life of a patient. This only stops the anus to pass out the feces, nothing more happens in this operation. Doctors bring the uninfected part of the colon or large intestine to the stoma, and it discharges the stool from now on.

Part of the Home Health Caregiver in Colostomy Care

Home health care provides the services of changing the ostomy pouching system, emptying the colostomy bag, and maintain a healthy stoma to patients at their doorsteps.

Healthy Stoma

A home health caregiver looks around the stoma and analysis of the skin. He/she has to maintain a healthy opening of the patient. Well, if your opening is normal, then it seems dark pink or red. These are the symptoms of a healthy hole. Moreover, if the pit is dark brown or black, then you are having some problems with the stoma. It can lead to the blockage, bleeding, and burning; thus, it is better to visit your ET nurse right after scrutinizing these signs.

The peristomal skin and stoma should not be rigid, it should be moist. Another necessary thing is the size of the skin barrier. Many colostomy patients the wrong size of the bag, then it makes the stoma ill and peristomal skin damage. The home stoma care service will look for this issue too. The caregiver will tell you about your stoma appearance and the right pouching system for it.

Changing of the Colostomy Bag

A stoma health caregiver changes your pouch at your home. The procedure involves the following steps:

1.      First, a caregiver needs to determine whether the patient is wearing a two-piece pouching system or a one-piece ostomy pouching system.

2.      The second step is to gather all the tools required for the changing of the pouching system, like adhesive remover, flanges, skin barrier, measuring card, bag, wipes, a pouch clip, ring seal, scissors, medicated spray, water, cloth, stoma powder, and a discardable sack.

3.      Then, wash your hands with a medicated soap. It is better to use a sanitizer or wear gloves before removing the used pouch.

4.      Use an adhesive remover to remove the sealing of the pouch. Apply it with hands and pull the bag away from the opening (gently).

5.      Thow this used stoma pouch in a discardable plastic sack or trash.

6.      Clean the stoma ad the skin around it with the lukewarm water. Do not use medicated soap. Rinse the portion with a soft linen cloth or medicated wipe.

7.      Once the stoma and peristomal is dry, apply the adhesive and paste the skin barrier on it. Place the new stoma bag and remove crumples through your hands.

8.  Wash your hands at the end or throw the gloves in the trash.

[presentlyk]

What is Rectal Stump? Does it Discharge Normal Stool?

Rectal Stump

In many digestive diseases, infections, blockages, and injuries, a person need bowel removal. Thus, doctors cut one end of the bowel and bring the other end to the abdominal wall. In the outer surface of the belly, they create a hole or opening for the excretion. So, this opening called stoma holds the one end of the colon, rectum, or bowel. The other end will stay in the original digestive tract, and doctors will sew or staple that part. After this procedure, a patient ejects the waste from the stoma. Well, the surgical blind-ended part of the bowel or rectum is a rectal stump.

In every type of ostomy, the intestine changes its path. They do not connect and touch their original paths, but still they produce discharge in form of stool and mucus. In the case of chron's diseases, ulcerative disease, and inflammatory bowel disease, the large intestine alters their passages and diverted to the stoma (created in the abdominal wall of a patient). Thus, the intestines pass the waste to the stoma. It collects the stool or mucus in a bg, called an ostomy or stoma pouching system.

In a few surgeries, doctors do not remove the rectum. But, it cannot perform its duty to hold the stool. The feces or waste comes out through the stoma, but the intestine also holds the rectum. The feces does not enter the rectum, the colon passes it to the stoma, and a bag or pouch collects it.

Discharge From Rectal Stump

In many cases, a patient can discharge the waste from the bottom. An ostomate can excrete the waste from the stoma and anus. This discharge from the rectal stump is normal in many cases. But, the condition can vary from one ostomate to another. Thus, it empties the rectum and discharges the fluid, which is normal.

If the waste from the bottom is giving bad odor and ejecting blood in the fluid, then you need to consult your surgeon. Otherwise, the discharge from the anus is normal even after the fabrication of stoma.

Many permanent ostomies need the permanent removal of the rectum, but in a few cases, a patient can keep their rectum. The people who do not need the removal of the rectum, have a chance of the reversal of the ostomy. Well, a patient requires the entire removal or a small chunk of the rectal removal depends on the disease. The treatments of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, ​colon cancer, trauma, or another condition will decide, either a patient can keep the rectum or not.

Why Does the Rectum Discharge?

The rectum can produce mucus. Even after the removal from the anal opening and colon, it continues to perform its duty. It is a living tissue present in the digestive system of a human body. It collects the feces from the colon and passes it to the anus for the excretion. However, a normal stool has mucus in it. It is not visible to a normal person in the feces because it presents a very low quantity. But, after the ostomy surgery and stoma, the stool goes to the abdominal opening, then a person can see the mucus. The ostomy separates the stool and mucus. It comes out through the anus and it is normal. A patient discharges this fluid waste when he/she sits on the toilet seat.

Sometimes, the mucus builds up in a very liquid or watery form, then it can leak out. This is the problem ostomates face after the removal of the rectum. Therefore, an ostomate can wear a sanitary napkin to hold the leakage.