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Partial Obstructions 9 weeks after bowel resection

Posted by st150799 @st150799, Apr 29 8:17pm

Hi everyone! I'm really hoping someone can give me some insight. I have crohns, was diagnosed about 15 years ago. I never had any symptoms except for a fistula 15 years ago and then apparently I had inflammation which created some strictures in the small ilieum. I lived with that a year or two, and just had a bowel resection in February. The recover was great, no issues at all. I was eating great, normal bowel movements. Then at week 9, I ate something and within 30 minutes the top of my stomach started to feel crampy. Well, it really got worse overnight where it felt like contractions. I neded up going to the hospital, they did a CT scan and said I had a partical obstruction in the same place??? Then of course some air and inflammation which caused me to look 5 months pregnant. I stayed in the hospital for 4 days. I NEVER had this happen before. The surgeon said it could just be some inflammation and check it again in 6 weeks with my GI. I'm on a low residue diet and if I eat any sugar or anything, my stomach cramps. It's so frustrating to have a surgery to feel better.. and now I almost feel worse.

Has anyone gone through this? Is this rebound inflammation from surgery? I'm so bummed this is happening....

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Autoimmune Diseases Support Group.

sbrown293 | @sbrown293 | Apr 30 10:36am

Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Thank you for sharing your experience. That’s what helps to make this community great. Everyone sharing their experiences and what worked/didn’t work.

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Mentor
Becky, Volunteer Mentor | @becsbuddy | Apr 30 10:01pm

@st150799 Wow, I don’t blame you for being frustrated. First , you have Crohn’s, then the surgery to fix things came with its own complications. From what I have read, adhesions and scar tissue can be part of the problem. Here is the link to the Digestive support group where you can go through any interesting discussions and see what others have to say.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/digestive-gastrointestinal-problems/
And let’s ask @alisonether @lisag03 @stef20 what information they may have. And also a thank you to @sbrown293 for welcoming you to Mayo Clinic Connect!

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lisag03 | @lisag03 | May 1 8:44am

I’m sorry you are going through this. I have Ulcerative Colitis (25 plus years) and in 5/2019 an obstructing tumor was found. I had a bowel resection, and then had to be reopened due to a leak. I started chemo therapy but it caused me so much diahrrhea and spasms that they stopped. A few days after stopping, I woke up with severe stomach pain. My husband was out of town m, so I had to be transported to the hospital. I had a small bowel obstruction, and it was caused by adhesions. I spent a week with an NG tube and trying to clear it with various methods, and it didn’t work, so they removed 15 cm of small bowel. I was very paranoid about another one because it was so painful. I just made sure to over chew my food and also just didn’t eat for awhile due to the trauma. I have not had another blockage since, but if I ever feel like food isn’t moving, I lay down and really massage my abdomen with firm presses in a clock wise way. I push down hard enough to cause pressure, and I can hear the air and bubbles start moving. Initially I did this quite frequently because I was so scared of getting another. Adhesions form quickly and I’ve had multiple surgeries since then (after the bowel obstruction, the surgeon realized he may have knicked my small bowel because I had a leak. I ultimately developed an enterocutaneous fistula and dealt with that drainage out of my abdomen for two months. Ultimately, the fistula broke loose and I had a full perforation requiring emergency surgery and turned septic.
It’s now been almost 5 years since the initial cancer surgery, and my stomach is doing good and I have pretty much gotten over the PTSD. I have identified food that I can’t eat (asparagus, celery, big quantities of steak) and am somewhat managing my UC with Entyvio

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1 reply
fdixon63 | @fdixon63 | May 1 8:59am

Hi. I had left hemicolectomy about 15 years ago due to repeated diverticulitis. Recovery went well and no further bouts of diverticulitis until... A couple of weeks ago I began having pain in my left side just below my waist. There were no other symptoms so I gave it a few days to, hopefully, return to normal. I was concerned that I'd have to see a doctor, get a CT and go on antibiotics, URG. When symptoms did not return to normal I put myself on a low residue diet. Two to three days later things were back to normal. What a relief. Hope you get the answers you need without any bad problems.

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1 reply
st150799 | @st150799 | May 1 9:20am
In reply to @lisag03 "I’m sorry you are going through this. I have Ulcerative Colitis (25 plus years) and in..." + (show)
@lisag03

I’m sorry you are going through this. I have Ulcerative Colitis (25 plus years) and in 5/2019 an obstructing tumor was found. I had a bowel resection, and then had to be reopened due to a leak. I started chemo therapy but it caused me so much diahrrhea and spasms that they stopped. A few days after stopping, I woke up with severe stomach pain. My husband was out of town m, so I had to be transported to the hospital. I had a small bowel obstruction, and it was caused by adhesions. I spent a week with an NG tube and trying to clear it with various methods, and it didn’t work, so they removed 15 cm of small bowel. I was very paranoid about another one because it was so painful. I just made sure to over chew my food and also just didn’t eat for awhile due to the trauma. I have not had another blockage since, but if I ever feel like food isn’t moving, I lay down and really massage my abdomen with firm presses in a clock wise way. I push down hard enough to cause pressure, and I can hear the air and bubbles start moving. Initially I did this quite frequently because I was so scared of getting another. Adhesions form quickly and I’ve had multiple surgeries since then (after the bowel obstruction, the surgeon realized he may have knicked my small bowel because I had a leak. I ultimately developed an enterocutaneous fistula and dealt with that drainage out of my abdomen for two months. Ultimately, the fistula broke loose and I had a full perforation requiring emergency surgery and turned septic.
It’s now been almost 5 years since the initial cancer surgery, and my stomach is doing good and I have pretty much gotten over the PTSD. I have identified food that I can’t eat (asparagus, celery, big quantities of steak) and am somewhat managing my UC with Entyvio

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Thank you so much for sharing. You’ve been through so much. What a warrior.

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st150799 | @st150799 | May 1 9:22am
In reply to @fdixon63 "Hi. I had left hemicolectomy about 15 years ago due to repeated diverticulitis. Recovery went well..." + (show)
@fdixon63

Hi. I had left hemicolectomy about 15 years ago due to repeated diverticulitis. Recovery went well and no further bouts of diverticulitis until... A couple of weeks ago I began having pain in my left side just below my waist. There were no other symptoms so I gave it a few days to, hopefully, return to normal. I was concerned that I'd have to see a doctor, get a CT and go on antibiotics, URG. When symptoms did not return to normal I put myself on a low residue diet. Two to three days later things were back to normal. What a relief. Hope you get the answers you need without any bad problems.

Jump to this post

Thank you for sharing. I have a little ptsd for sure with everything I eat. Hope to get some answers soon,

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