Adhesions affecting digestion and causing pain

Posted by Suzanne @suzanneb, Jan 6, 2020

Has anyone had a laparoscopic procedure at Mayo (Rochester) to explore and see what the extent of their adhesions are? Anyone have success having them removed? If so, who did you see?
It makes me very nervous to think about surgery since that is likely what caused them, but my quality of life 4 years in has gotten to be poor as pain keeps me from basic activities. I'd love to talk to a doctor about it to see what they think.

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Thank you Teresa. I am actually scheduled for Gastro (again) in Feb. I am tired. This has been ongoing, leading into this last year. I had to leave work. I was not ready for that. My adhesions are likely profuse, so there will be no straight forward fix. My docs are very good. I am confident in that. They know I have been running hard away from another surgery. I am always looking for working pearls and the latest info. Thanks Teresa. This blog helps.

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@hopeful33250

Hello @upartist
I'm sorry that I don't have an answer for that. I'm not sure how adhesions are located. Best check with a doctor to see if there is a way that can be done.

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When they were trying to figure out where my blockage was, they did x rays and a CT scan with contrast. This showed where stuff was it the intestine vs areas that had nothing but air. This would indicate where everything was stopped, thus giving them an idea of other adhesions. But really, I don’t think they can exactly tell until they get in there. I know when they started laparoscopic last time, as soon as the camera was in, they saw how bad the adhesions were, and used the camera as a guide to see where to open me back up. My incision ended up being bigger, about 3 inches or so because they needed to start where there weren’t any adhesions. I hope this info helps

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@thull

When they were trying to figure out where my blockage was, they did x rays and a CT scan with contrast. This showed where stuff was it the intestine vs areas that had nothing but air. This would indicate where everything was stopped, thus giving them an idea of other adhesions. But really, I don’t think they can exactly tell until they get in there. I know when they started laparoscopic last time, as soon as the camera was in, they saw how bad the adhesions were, and used the camera as a guide to see where to open me back up. My incision ended up being bigger, about 3 inches or so because they needed to start where there weren’t any adhesions. I hope this info helps

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Thanks, @thull. You provided some very helpful information from your own experiences.

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@upartist

Thank you Teresa. I am actually scheduled for Gastro (again) in Feb. I am tired. This has been ongoing, leading into this last year. I had to leave work. I was not ready for that. My adhesions are likely profuse, so there will be no straight forward fix. My docs are very good. I am confident in that. They know I have been running hard away from another surgery. I am always looking for working pearls and the latest info. Thanks Teresa. This blog helps.

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I'm so glad that you are finding Connect helpful to you, @upartist. I look forward to hearing how you are doing so I hope you keep updating as things change.

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@upartist

Hi Teresa. Another question I have, is what tests are done to figure out where the adhesions are located? Any information would help. Thank you!

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I had adhesions removed at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix & surgery only makes it worse. I have adhesion's that are plastered to my intestines & bladder. There is nothing they can do about it. The dr. I had was very good & he removed what he could but through the process there was a small tearin the small bowel so you have to be careful about removing them. My dr. said no more surgery. It would only cause me more problems & just to treat the pain. Only way adhesion's show is through a laporoscopy. They do not show on a MRI or CY Scan. Best of luck to you.

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@tigreyes2004

I had adhesions removed at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix & surgery only makes it worse. I have adhesion's that are plastered to my intestines & bladder. There is nothing they can do about it. The dr. I had was very good & he removed what he could but through the process there was a small tearin the small bowel so you have to be careful about removing them. My dr. said no more surgery. It would only cause me more problems & just to treat the pain. Only way adhesion's show is through a laporoscopy. They do not show on a MRI or CY Scan. Best of luck to you.

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Thank you to all of you for the info. It is helpful. I feel like there are a lot of people with this issue at varying degrees. Today I can think again, as my pain and nausea levels are down. It is a relief to be able to talk to others who actually understand. I am quite lucky, because I am still able to exercise. Plus I can make weird food taste good (I love taste!) if I allow myself to be creative, when I have to adjust the levels of stool burden according to my fluctuating bowel activity. So thank you!

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Thank you to you for being there.
We all have issue to do with & it always helps to have a listening ear.
Best of luck to you
Tigreyes

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