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I would say "don't fix what's not broken." ANY cutting or surgery JUST IN CASE or JUST BECAUSE is foolish. My bro-in-law's Dr saw a lesion on is colon last year and INSISTED that my bro-in-law have it cut off. Routine surgery. He talked my b-in-law into it and TWICE after that he was hospitalized nearly on his deathbed from where the colon leaked and caused internal poisoning.
I wouldn't be surprised if my b-in-law gets cancer from cutting into the bowel. Think abt it. It can easily cause a myriad of OTHER problems right away or later on.
I've thought of getting a supra pubic cath many times in the past since with us females a urethral foley can easily get contaminated (UTIs) by being so close to two other openings. An SP goes in the bladder too as a foreign object and many who have them get just AS many UTIs as us with foleys.
Plus ... a hole in my tummy is one too many holes than I NEED.
A lady's husband on the SCIC list wrote this::
"Several years back Miles got a SP. After being in the hospital for nearly 2 weeks to control the hemorraging caused from the surgery - they sent him home with two leg bags because he was still peeing out both the SP and his penis!
This lasted about a month longer when we decided that enough was enough....we had it reversed and his is back to the foley in his urethra. It is interesting that someone said that the prostrate was nicked and that caused a bunch of bleeding....I wonder if it was his neurogenic bladder bleeding (his doc's claim) or that.....we will never know.
All we do know is that since that operation he has been on major pain meds to control bladder and back pain.
I am sure there are success stories with SP...we just aren't one of them. They do have these penis pouches that are made to "catch" the leaking urine...but who wants to ferment in that? Adding my two cents....
Nita wife of Miles C4-5 quad 1973 - DC cop decided to drive the MD Beltway drunk - and hit my husband who was in the breakdown lane"
Greg ... My luck has been so poor (understatement) with Drs and surgeries that I do things as a last resort now.
I do my bowel program every third day and, ya, it's a damn inconvenience to MANY THINGS (traveling and hiring help for it, etc.) BUT getting a colostomy for ease? No way in my book. Remember ... you'll live with the consequences. My grandfather had one in his 80s after colon cancer. I remember the faint odor ... not so much of poop but of it's smell against the rubber bags.
Lori Michaelson
Age - 41
C4/5 complete quad, 26 years post
Tucson, AZ
-------Original Message-------
Date: 10/15/05 16:10:30
Subject: [QUAD-L] B-P
With so much time and energy it takes to do a B-P, I keep thinking about colostomies. From what I've read on-line, it looks like most quads who get it, like it. Do many of you guys/gals have it?
It seems the vast majority of my problems are bp or bladder related. It seems now anything on either side of being "regular" causes abdomen pain. And with all my meds now, that is quite often.
Though I'm still not quite sure how it works. Let's say I was a little "backed-up" and it was causing pain.
* If I had a colostomy, would it still be causing that pain? My thinking is, that empties more often, therefore less pain?
* I read 1 place that you still need to once a week do a regular bp program just to clean out the bowels. Is this true? If so, then is it still worth it?
It just seems it would help simplify life. That is one issue when trying to get morning help. Either they don't want to do that or don't know how to.
Thanks,
Greg
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