Urostomy

The surgical process to disconnect ureters from the bladder and connecting them to the outside of the body through an opening in the abdominal wall is known as urostomy surgery. This procedure involves the removal of a small piece of bowel that the surgeon uses as a conduit. One end of that conduit connects to the ureters, while the other connects to the opening in the abdomen.

A urostomy is generally on the right-hand side of the abdomen, but it may be on the left side, depending on some specific circumstances.

The urinary system

The urinary system consists of two kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. Kidneys filter blood to extract urine from it and pass urine to the bladder through ureters. The bladder stores urine until it becomes full. Next, it pushes urine out of the body through the urethra. The bladder has muscle tissues that help it squeeze the urine out of the body.

Why might you need a urostomy?

There can be various reasons why you might need a urostomy. You can discuss these reasons with your doctor or ostomy care nurse.

Here are the most common reasons that might lead you to require a urostomy.

• Trauma
• Cancer
• Bladder failure
• Congenital abnormalities

The look and feel of a urostomy stoma

The stoma of a urostomy should be a little protruded from the abdominal skin. It can also be flat in some cases. Generally, a stoma is pink or red, moist, and soft to touch. The outer lining of the stoma is pretty much the same as that of the inside of the mouth. With no nerve ending in the stoma, you will not feel anything when you touch or rub it. It, however, contains a lot of blood vessels that can release blood when you rub the stoma. The bleeding should stop shortly. If it doesn’t, contact your ostomy care nurse right away.

During the first few weeks after surgery, your stoma may be a bit large due to swelling. Swelling subsides with time, and the stoma settles down to a permanent shape and size. There will be stitches around the stoma, but they will dissolve over time.

Caring for the stoma and skin around it

When you have got a stoma, you have to make sure to take good care of it. You will need to wear an ostomy bag the entire time to manage urine evacuations. While wearing that bag, it is crucial to protect the peristomal skin from coming in contact with the stomal output. That’s why you will need to ensure a leak-proof seal between the skin barrier and the peristomal skin.

Another disadvantage of the contact between peristomal skin and the stomal output is the skin irritation, which not only compromises the seal even further but also leaves an unwanted impact on the quality of life. Using an inappropriate pouching system is the top reason for leakage and resultant skin complications.

To learn how to take care of your stoma and the skin around it, you may want to discuss with your ostomy care nurse.