What is stoma reversal surgery?

A stoma reversal is surgery to attach your bowel together after a colostomy or ileostomy (also called ostomies). During ostomy surgery, the bowel was separated and attached to an opening made in the skin of your belly. The opening is called a stoma. Stool passes through the stoma and out of your body.

Ostomy surgery can be permanent or temporary. It depends on the reason for the surgery. A stoma reversal can be done if there is a large enough section of healthy bowel left to be rejoined. A temporary ostomy may be used for certain health problems. These include problems such as bowel cancer, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, and bowel injuries.

A stoma reversal is done after the original surgery has healed. This most often takes at least 6 to 8 weeks. But in some cases it can take up to 12 months. Your bowel and anal muscles need to be working for the reversal to work well.

The doctor rejoins the ends of the bowel that were separated. The bowel is stitched or stapled back together. The part of the belly where the stoma was is then closed with stitches.

How the stoma reversal is done depends on what type of ostomy surgery you had. One type involves making a large cut (incision). This way takes longer to heal. The other type uses smaller cuts. It doesn't take as long to heal.