The stoma is a Greek word that is also used as a medical term meaning “opening”. A stoma is defined as an abdomen opening connected to either the digestive system or the urinary system to excrete the waste materials from your body. A stoma is an opening in the abdomen where a small part of the intestine is brought to the surface of your belly and sewn at a place. This stoma operation is done for those people suffering from injury or disease in the bowel, and digestive system and allows your body to expel the waste materials. Nowadays, in this advanced technical era, many stoma care singapore is available to help needy people. A stoma is generally a shiny, pinkish-red round-shaped hole on the surface of the belly.
Types of stomas
Some common types of stomas are mentioned below:
- Colostomy: – In a colostomy, a hole is made from the large intestine also known as the colon to drain out the waste materials. In the digestive system, the large intestine absorbs more liquids and nutrients. The type of stool excreted varies and depends upon the length of the colon to the stoma.
- Ileostomy: – In Ileostomy the stool is excreted from the ileum also known as the small intestine. The stool in the small intestine is liquid and contains high digestive enzymes, therefore extra care is needed to prevent the stool from damaging the skin around the stoma.
- Urostomy: – A Urostomy is used to treat permanent drainage problems of the urine system. This is used when a body has a permanent problem in the urinary tract or bladder. In this, a portion of the ileum is used to connect to the ureters to bypass the bladder and generate a urinary diversion.
Stoma Care
The stoma is generally swollen after the surgery but it will shrink over a few weeks. The ostomy appliances consist of a pouch into which the stoma drains. You will need to change the pouch every three to seven days depending on your pouch size. While changing the pouch you need to clean your skin area around the stoma with lukewarm water and then set it to dry. When you removed your pouch and if you noticed any sign of irritation, blood, or changes in the size and appearance of the stoma immediately contact your doctor.