Your Child's Bowel Surgery: Ileoanal Pouch

Your child will be having ileoanal pouch bowel surgery.  This surgery is done to treat diseases of the digestive tract. It takes out all of the large intestine. When healed, bowel movements still occur through the anus.

The pouch is also called a "J-pouch" for the shape of the pouch.

Preparing for surgery

Your child will start getting ready a few weeks before surgery. You and your child may need to do the following:

• Tell your child's healthcare provider about any medicines they take. These include any over-the-counter (OTC) nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and any vitamins. Also tell their healthcare provider about any herbs or supplements you give your child. Ask whether your child should stop taking any of them before surgery.
• If your child will have a stoma, a specially trained healthcare provider called an enterostomal therapy (ET) nurse will meet with you. The ET nurse will help find the best place for the stoma on the abdominal wall. A stoma is an opening. It gives a new way for stool and mucus to leave the body from the intestines. 
• Follow any directions your child is given for taking medicines and for not eating or drinking before surgery. This includes any instructions for bowel prep.

The procedure

• The colon and rectum are taken out.
• The anus and surrounding muscles are left in place.
• Part of the small intestine is reshaped to form a pouch within the body. The pouch works like a rectum. It stores waste until a bowel movement occurs.
• A temporary ileostomy may be needed as the intestine heals. This is a procedure that lets waste pass into a pouch outside the body.

Risks and possible complications

Bowel surgery has some risks and possible complications. Your child's healthcare provider will talk about them with you and your child. Risks and possible complications may include:

• Infection
• Injury to nearby organs
• An anastomosis that leaks
• Blood clots
• Risks from the anesthesia
• Pouch inflammation or malfunction

Diarrhea is very common after this surgery. Over weeks to months, your child's bowel will go back to normal, but most children may end up with more frequent and softer bowel movements than before. Sometimes a bowel movement occurs overnight. If your healthcare provider thinks the pouch may have a problem, they can put a flexible tube (a scope) inside it to look around and find out what is wrong.

© The StayWell Company, LLC. 800 Township Line Road, Yardley, PA 19067. All rights reserved. This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical care. Always follow your healthcare professional's instructions. This information has been modified by your health care provider with permission from the publisher.