Bleeding ulcer in K-pouch

I am so sorry Art Mom,

No, I have no idea whatsoever what to do...

I had stomach ulcers as a teen (probably due to all of the meds etc) but that resolved itself once I got my pouch...

Not sure what the rules are these days for diet but light, not too much roughage, low residue for easy emptying and intubation and tons of lube.

Good luck for your daughter...I hope that they get to the bottom of this fast and fix her up

Sharon

 Hello

Yes I have had years of bleeding following inserting catheter.

I had been found to have ulcers on entrance to K pouch.

I think the holes in side of catheters catch and result in the bleeding.

To bear in mind my surgery was over 40 years ago.

There were no problems found with the reservoir itself.

Many problems, many ideas.

Best wishes Pat  

Art Mom,  I hope you daughter is much better by now.  I am experiencing her symptoms currrently.  It is so scary.  It's like nobody knows what to do.  Were the doctors able to help her?

Thanks!

Hoping

Out of the woods thanks to Dr. Shen-Cleveland Clinic. Doctor's here (MI) diagnosed daughter with "Chrones of the pouch", permanent disease, need for steroids for 8 weeks, antibiotics. 

Got in to Cleveland- bless them for seeing us right away. Diagnosis after Dr. Shen's scope...no Chrones, no infection, don't go on steroids. Ulcer due to catheter wear and tear in pouch. Experiment with other catheters, experiment with other lubricants. See him at least once a year!!!

We have yet to hear back from MI docs. Thinking of dropping them all together. The ER doctors saved her with emergency surgery. Her GI doc's only caused panic and didn't know what they were looking at. ARG. 

So glad that she is doing better...yes, those catheters can be rough on the stoma-valve...I get regular granulation by the entrance that the cath hooks on and starts bleeding. Sometimes it is droplets and sometimes it is more. I have to use silver nitrate sticks to cauterize them regularly.

Thankfully it is just granulations and Dr C taught me what to do with it. If he hadn't I would be in a constant state of panic.

Keep that little girl of yours safe

Sharon

I haven't been around for a while, but I just read this thread and I wanted to share how I "prep" my catheters:  I too was getting the hooking and bleeding as I inserted or removed the catheter.  

I took some very fine sand paper like a 600 grit and simply sanded the edge of each of the catheter holes to remove that sharp edge and leave the edge with a radius.  It takes a lot of sanding with a fine grit but you want a smooth finish that you can't get with a course paper.  For me this greatly reduced the frequency of bleeding.

I don't know why the catheter manufacturers don't do this?!?!

I hope this helps.

I wonder if you could get the same result with a Dremel tool? My husband thinks you can do anything with a Dremel tool!

Jan

Jan, I have also used a Dremel tool to do the job. I used a conical shaped bit to bevel the edges. Running it at a higher speed seemed to leave a smoother finish, but you have to hold the catheter pretty securely and watch your fingers.  You can also go back after and smooth out the edges with sandpaper.    Something like this bit or smaller will work:

There are smaller tools (almost identical) for pedicures that work just as well...and they are a bit less dangerous and easier to handle. They don't run on as high a speed but at least they won't sand your fingers off.

S