Your colostomy may be short-term. If you have surgery on part of your large intestine, a colostomy will allow the other part of your intestine to rest while you recover. Once your body has fully recovered from the first surgery, you will have another surgery to reattach the ends of the large intestine. In general, this is done after 12 weeks.

There are a few reasons to perform a colostomy:

• Infection of the abdomen, such as perforated diverticulitis or an abscess
• Injury to the colon or rectum (for example, a gunshot wound)
• Partial or complete blockage of the large bowel (intestinal obstruction)
• Rectal or colon cancer
• Wounds or fistulas in the perineum -- the area between the anus and vulva (women) or the anus and scrotum (men)

Whether a colostomy is temporary or permanent depends on the disease or injury. In most instances, colostomies can be reversed.

You will be in the hospital for 3 - 7 days. You may have to stay longer if your colostomy was done as an emergency procedure.

You may be able to suck on ice chips on the same day as your surgery to ease your thirst. By the next day, you will probably be allowed to drink clear liquids. Your health care providers will slowly add thicker fluids and then soft foods as your bowels begin to work again. You may be eating normally within 2 days after your surgery.

The colostomy drains stool (feces) from the colon into the colostomy bag. Most colostomy stool is softer and more liquid than stool that is passed normally. The texture of stool depends on which part of the intestine was used to form the colostomy.

Before you are released from the hospital, a colostomy nurse will teach you about diet and how to care for the colostomy.

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Review Date: 05/06/2011
Reviewed By: Shabir Bhimji, MD, PhD, Specializing in General Surgery, Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Midland, TX. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)