TY - JOUR

T1 - Bowel function and quality of life after colostomy in individuals with spinal cord injury

AU - Bølling Hansen, Rikke

AU - Staun, Michael

AU - Kalhauge, Anna

AU - Langholz, Ebbe

AU - Biering-Sørensen, Fin

PY - 2016/5

Y1 - 2016/5

N2 - OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of colostomy on bowel function and quality of life (QoL) in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).DESIGN: Cross-sectional descriptive study.SETTING: Department for Spinal Cord Injuries and Departments of Gastroenterology and Radiology, Rigshospitalet.PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen individuals with SCI and a colostomy performed post injury, 12 males, 6 females, 8 with tetraplegia and 10 with paraplegia. Median age at time of study was 49.9 years, years since lesion was 3-56 years, and time since colostomy was performed 0.5 to 20 years.INTERVENTIONS: Questionnaires and measurement of gastrointestinal transit time (GITT).OUTCOME MEASURES: Retrospective data collection from patient records, a questionnaire on bowel management pre and post colostomy, quality of life (QoL) by SF-36, and GITT.RESULTS: Seventy-two percent significantly reduced their use of time on bowel emptying after the colostomy. All but one reported being content with the colostomy. Thirty-nine percent reported one or more problems related to the colostomy. Seventy-five percent had a GITT within normal range for able-bodied populations. When disregarding the physical component, QoL was not significantly lower in the total study group compared to a Danish norm group, but significantly lower when compared the subgroup of persons with tetraplegia.CONCLUSION: A colostomy reduces the time necessary for bowel management. The majority of individuals with SCI and a colostomy did not perceive bowel management as being a problem. The results indicate that colostomy is a favourable option for individuals with SCI, who spend long hours on bowel management and for whom non-invasive procedures did not improve the situation enough.

AB - OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of colostomy on bowel function and quality of life (QoL) in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).DESIGN: Cross-sectional descriptive study.SETTING: Department for Spinal Cord Injuries and Departments of Gastroenterology and Radiology, Rigshospitalet.PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen individuals with SCI and a colostomy performed post injury, 12 males, 6 females, 8 with tetraplegia and 10 with paraplegia. Median age at time of study was 49.9 years, years since lesion was 3-56 years, and time since colostomy was performed 0.5 to 20 years.INTERVENTIONS: Questionnaires and measurement of gastrointestinal transit time (GITT).OUTCOME MEASURES: Retrospective data collection from patient records, a questionnaire on bowel management pre and post colostomy, quality of life (QoL) by SF-36, and GITT.RESULTS: Seventy-two percent significantly reduced their use of time on bowel emptying after the colostomy. All but one reported being content with the colostomy. Thirty-nine percent reported one or more problems related to the colostomy. Seventy-five percent had a GITT within normal range for able-bodied populations. When disregarding the physical component, QoL was not significantly lower in the total study group compared to a Danish norm group, but significantly lower when compared the subgroup of persons with tetraplegia.CONCLUSION: A colostomy reduces the time necessary for bowel management. The majority of individuals with SCI and a colostomy did not perceive bowel management as being a problem. The results indicate that colostomy is a favourable option for individuals with SCI, who spend long hours on bowel management and for whom non-invasive procedures did not improve the situation enough.

KW - Journal Article

U2 - 10.1179/2045772315Y.0000000006

DO - 10.1179/2045772315Y.0000000006

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 25738657

VL - 39

SP - 281

EP - 289

JO - Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine

JF - Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine

SN - 1079-0268

IS - 3

ER -