About Irrigation

Authors of this page

Much of the information on here has been taken from the Ostomyland Message Board - Irrigation Section. The authors are:

AutoDraw
JasonD
MichNL

What is Irrigation?

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In very basic terms you have a certain amount of water in a bag, that is tube fed into the stoma, this in turn - and over about 45 mins - flushes out the contents of the colon into the special bag.

Who can Irrigate?

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Not everyone can irrigate. It's usually only Colostomy patients with a colostomy of the sigmoid or descending colon who can irrigate. Some with a transverse colostomy do irrigate, but many find they are not clear of output for long enough to make the effort worth their time.
It also depends on what condition the bowel is in, and the underlying medical condition. Reasons for not irrigating can be presence of a hernia, or further evidence of bowel disease/weakness.

What are the advantages of Irrigation?

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After you've been doing it for a while you dont need wear the full size colostomy pouches, you can get away with just wearing the mini stoma cap type pouches - this is particularly useful if you live in a Country where you have to pay for your ostomy pouches. If you live in the UK and get them free on the NHS then this advantage is moot. The reason why you only need a small stoma cap instead of a proper size bag is because after irrigation you can go up to three days before you start passing stuff again.

What are the disadvantages of Irrigation?

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It's a lengthy process. In the initial attempts you could be locked in the bathroom for an hour. With practise you'd probably get it down to 30 - 45 minutes.

What equipment do I need?

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a picture of the irrigation equipment∞ on The Ostomy Network of Windsor website.
Irrigation Equipment Discussions

How do I get the equipment?

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Contact the Manufacturers∞ and ask them for details. Also see Irrigation Equipment Discussions for people's opinions.

How do I get started?

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It would be best to have an ET nurse, or possibly your surgeon give you a checkover beforehand. Fellow irrigators are always keen that new people benefit from this procedure as soon as they can, but since we're not doctors or nurses ourselves and can't see you in person, it's always wise to be medically cleared.
Once you have their approval, check out the written articles on basic method, buy your supplies and proceed!

How soon before I can irrigate?
Some hospitals teach their patients the procedure before they leave hospital. It is usually best to wait until you're fully healed (6 to 8 weeks) No sense making yourself anxious if your incisions are still tender. Also it can take a while for your bowels to settle down after such surgery; you may experience loose stools or diarrhea for several weeks after. Let that settle and see how your guts are behaving once you've resumed your normal eating habits.
If you require chemo or radiation it's usually advisable to wait until that's over with.

Common problems.

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Everybody has different experiences and responses, but the most common problems are water not going in readily, or getting output too soon.

How do I get support as I learn about Irrigation?

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Ostomyland Message Board - Irrigation Section∞. Come and join us on the Message Board!

Further Information

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Irrigation - A Possibility?∞ A Viable alternative and a personal story.
Written by Robert Picken.

Irrigation: A way of achieving faecal continence for colostomists.∞ Written by Mich, this article is extremely well-thought of as an excellent guide to Irrigation.

Irrigation Links∞

Ostomyland Message Board - Irrigation Section∞

Categories

CategoryIrrigationInfo