intestinal surgery

Posted by joedeg @joedeg, Jan 25, 2019

I had surgery about 3 yrs ago (had about 9" of intestine removed) Post surgery, I notice I have a rather large bump on my belly (right side), like I a beer belly to one side. Is this something normal after a surgery like this? Does it eventually go away? I had other issues as well, punctured colon l I think the terminology was. Just kind of concerned and I know this sounds weird, but did they just stuff my intestines in bunched up?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Digestive Health Support Group.

Jamie Olson | @jamienolson | Jan 27, 2019

Hi @joedeg! Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect, Thank you for posting! This is a great spot for you to share your concern regarding your surgery and talk with others who have potentially experienced the same thing. While we wait for response from others, tell me, have you spoke with your primary care provider about why your belly would be bulging in such manner? and if so, what was his/her answer? My thought was that- I would assume they had to cut through the muscle and then what is the recovery process for the procedure you had done? Was there any therapy for the muscles that were disturbed during surgery?
Also, another thought was- I know that after women give birth or have a C-section there is something called a belly band that you can wear to help assist in pulling those muscles back in place. I wonder if something like that would work for a situation like yours? Just a thought.

Kanaaz Pereira, Connect Moderator | @kanaazpereira | Mar 31, 2019

Hi @joedeg,

I wanted to follow-up and ask how you are doing; did you get any explanation regarding your concerns? There are a number of reasons that someone will experience abdominal swelling after surgery. Here are some explanations:
http://www.healthguideinfo.com/digestive-disorders/p118708/.

I also thought you might be interested in reading this discussion on Connect:
– Stomach like a beer belly after colon cancer surgery https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/colon-cancer-22c04d/
I hope @travelgirl @nannytart and others will return and share their thoughts as well. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.