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60 yr old male-Diverticulitis with fistula passage to bladder
Hello,
I'm a 60 year old, and what I thought was a very healthy male all of my life.
No smoking, drinking, on no meds, never overweight, annual physicals...etc
On Christmas day I had severe abdomen pain. Never felt pain there before or since then.
In Mid January I developed pain / pressure during urination. Family Dr thought perhaps prostatitis, so he put me on an antibiotic. One day I was urinating and after I was done air began to come out. Dr checked urine and red flags went off. He referred me to a Urologist. After numerous appts , CT scan....etc they found severe diverticulitis and fistula passage to the bladder. I met with the surgeon yesterday and surgery is scheduled 4/3 due to his availability. I've been basically disabled since Jan.
He warned me of 3 outcomes after resection.
-robotic surgery with repair and resection. 1 week recovery
-if more severe, possible ileostomy w/ 6 week recovery
-worst case colostomy w/ 6 months recovery
Obviously I'm praying for #1
Looking for a member with the same or similar issue please.
Thanks
Tom
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Thanks again sir!
Hi Mike,
In my case , the pain on Christmas Day was lower just like yours. But like I mentioned in my story, I have never had pain like that before (from my best recollection) and haven't had any since. In my 60 yrs, I've never had any issues going #2 other than an occasional bout with constipation which we all get once in a while. I truly thought the abdominal pain on Christmas was severe gas pains. I didn't know....
Tom, thank you for the quick response. I was diagnosed with Diverticulosis few years ago and I had no pain until a year ago. I have three attacks at in one year. Extreme pain. Doctor prescribed antibiotics and at the same time I went on a strict diet on all the three attacks. Now I’m not sure if the antibiotics helped me with the pain or the diet. Like I mentioned before it goes away and it comes back few month after.
Hi Tom, My perforation was not associated with the bladder. The perforated material (abscess) went into my abdominal area causing "free air" and quite a bit of pain. I was in the emergency room thinking the pain was from urinary retention. I was actually hoping that I had a fistula into the bladder and that diagnosis would answer the question of why I had monthly UTI's. So, they did look for a fistula, but there wasn't one. I truly can understand the pain level you are experiencing and identify with biting down on a towel. I'm sorry, but with the surgery, that will be gone! Positive thoughts are the BEST. I worried about the "bag" and was told it would be a possibility. It wasn't necessary. I did have a small drainage pouch for 7 days... more of a nuisance, not a crisis. It speeds up healing by drawing fluids from the surgical site.
To those who question to wait on surgery, I want to add that I would not recommend the emergency room approach. The infection from a perforated colon is very serious. I was in the hospital for seven days and on antibiotics for 45 days before they did my resection. Also, once I was recovered from surgery, 4-8 weeks, I was able to eat foods I hadn't been able to eat for years. No pain, no running to the bathroom.
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1 ReactionI have a friend that had the same thing as you. They went in repaired the sigmoid/bladder and removed part of the sigmoid colon. She did require a bag for a while until she was healed. Several months later, they reversed the procedure and she no longer has a bag.
Thank you for the support Lucy!
( I don't bite on a towel, I bite my finger knuckle to create pain in my hand to get mind off of going #1. (I know.....crazy)
Thank you anniegk. Yes, I have until 4/3 to mentally prepare to wake up with the news of a bag. (god help me) I do understand that the surgeon had to give me the worst case scenarios.
I'm just sick that I have to go 5 more weeks of living like this . But my urologist wanted to wait for this particular 5 star surgeon (General Surgery | Robotic Assisted Surgery)
I truly am like a disabled person.
I need to have quick access to a bathroom.
You will do fine! My surgeon also told me I might wake up with a bag. I was relieved when he was able to complete the surgery without a bag. Even if it happens, they can usually reverse it at a later date after everything is healed. Stay strong...you got this!
Thanks for contributing for me and our friends here!
yes, he advised that if he had to take out more of my diseased colon, I would probably have to have a colostomy bag. Fortunately, I did not.