Thursday, June 2, 2011

complex, low output fistula

Ok, looks like most people are agreeing my CT today showed an enterocutaneous fistula. For you non medical people that is a small tunnel between my guts and the outside of my body.
Normally this is easy to diagnose as the fistula has a high output of material, you lose weight and feel horrible. Mine did not and has not presented that way.

How do you fix it? Manage it? From my study it seems like you deal with any pressing health issues first like infection or dehydration. Then you control the output, either with medications or going on TPN (getting everything through a special iv line, not eating anything by mouth. for as long as it takes) or surgery if nothing else works.

From my CT scan this morning it apprears I have a fistula from an intestinal surgical site up to and through the scar where my stoma was taken down on my right side.

As I don't feel horrible, I'm able to eat and not lose weight and time has done nothing to heal the fistula an interventional path has been proposed for the next course of action.

To my understanding I am going to go to Super D's part of the hospital. They will stick a little catheter in the hole leaking stuff out of my side and inject contrast into it. If they see a tract they can clearly visualize then a surgeon of the IR doctor will inject a fancy super glue into it to shut it down and close it up.

I have no idea yet how long this takes, complications, if it hurts or anything like that. But that is what has been proposed. Now you know just as much as I do.

But only about this. I know lots about lots of other stuff, so don't even try it.

1 comment:

  1. Fancy super glue = gorilla glue, I'm telling ya, that stuff works for everything. Its the duct tape of glues.

    ReplyDelete

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