Hiccups for 48 hours after stoma reversal

Hi

Glad to hear that your dad's op has gone well but a bit surprised that they've let him home so early - generally they like the patient to pass wind or have a bowel motion before discharging. I'm wondering if the hiccups are a reaction to the anesthetic or maybe trapped wind. Did he have keyhole surgery? Apparently they pump air in to the body to give the surgeon more room to work and a lot of people find it quite uncomfortable afterwards and recommend peppermint tea. 

Have they given your dad any food guidance? Little and often is good but he needs to stick to a low residue diet for a few weeks (like after he had his stoma first done so simple foods like white bread, rice, mash potato etc.) to get his bowel used to working again. Once it does he may find that he gets very sore so have some wet wipes (I like the baby wipes because they're bigger than the toilet ones then I dispose of them in one of the stoma 'poo' bags and put in the bin) and some soothing cream like sudocream.

I think I was maybe 3 days post op before I passed a bowel movement and then it was very loose - I was glad I had an ensuite room on the ward!

i would be tempted to ring the ward he was on for guidance - mention the hiccups and certainly ask about the dressing. My wound  healed really well but they still gave me a handful of dressings and told me to put a clean one on every couple of days.

I've attached a copy of the booklet that I was given by the stoma nurses (who will still support you even after the reversal) and hope the ward is able to help you with your questions

www.beatingbowelcancer.org/.../Stoma-Reversal.pdf

 https://www.beatingbowelcancer.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Eating-Well-booklet-V8.0.pdf

https://www.beatingbowelcancer.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/BowelControlExercisesV5.0.pdf

Take care

Karen x

Hi

I see that no one has answered yet. I expect because many of us didn't have hiccups. A quick google tells me that hiccups after abdominal surgery are a 'thing' and you should seek help after 48 hours. I also think that there are some medications you can take to stop them if they are persistent. With regard to going home so soon, that does seem a bit quick. After my reversal I was sent home after my first bowel movement around day 4. I found opening my bowels intensely painful, like passing broken glass but there is nothing you can do about it except take strong pain killers but it was noticeably better by 2 weeks post op. Some people stay on their low residue diet to minimize the volume of poo for a week or 2 and introduce fibre slowly. I kept my fibre going and adjusted eventually. 

Dressing wise, there is a special stitch called a purse string that many people have which leaves the middle open allowing drainage out (I had a drain in for a week) reducing the risk of fluid build up as infection risks are high when dealing with the bowel. This takes 4 to 6 weeks to heal but should be redressed.

In summary contact your nurse at his GP surgery for an appointment for the dressing to be taken down and assessed, if your Dad is mobile and you can get him there. If he is too ill ask for the district nurses details and ask them if they will come and see him. If he is still hiccuping or in a lot of pain take him to see his GP.

I am only advising you on what I would do in your position, I hope it helps.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and reply. 

I was shocked he was released so soon too I tried to ask about it and was brushed off with “no no it’s fine he go now” 

on the north Bristol nhs stoma reversal guide booklet online there was a part that said about patients staying one night and no mention of the bowels needing to work before leaving hospital and he was at a north bristol hospital. so when I found/read that I assumed it was more common than I’d thought. 

Ive got him on a low residue diet but he’s not managing to eat much because he’s feeling sick and the hiccups make it harder to eat and make him feel more sick when he eats.

His surgery was done entirely through the stoma opening with no other incisions it was a double barrel stoma where both ends of the remaining bowel were brought to the surface to form his stoma so his surgeon freed them from the skin brought them out of the stoma hole to reattach them then pushed back through the same hole. 

Im having trouble convincing my dad to see a gp as he basically thinks they’re useless. I might trying ringing the colorectal ward for advice, the trouble is he never even made it to the ward as they didn’t have a bed up there for him (as they’d all expected him to need icu for a few days after last time) so he was put back in the surgical unit where whatever op people have they all get admitted there then sent to appropriate wards after their op only dad went back there after his op then home. Which is probably part of the reason we weren’t given as much advice or information when he was discharged. He’s reluctant to get in touch with the hospital as he’s worried they’ll want him to go in to see them and the journey there isn’t very nice to say the least when you’ve had surgery.   He’s hoping the hiccups will go away and that things will get moving. He has passed wind a couple times but that’s all so far.

I honestly don’t know how he’s coping with the hiccups this long I can barely tolerate them for a few minutes. 

Hi Hereformydad

So pleased to hear that your dad is doing so well.  

I would speak to his GP about the dressing.  I had the district nurse call in to deal with mine. I didn't have any stitches in my bigger cut when I had my laparoscopic surgery, I was told I was glued together.  Not heard of pressure dressings in this respect before but everything moves on so may be the latest thing.

Anyway, hope he continues to do well and keep us informed of his progress.

Take care

VickiLynne

We also have our helpline 0808 808 0000 If you want guidance from them .How are the hiccups today? I think the diaphragm can get a bit irritated after surgery but you should phone for guidance as it sounds really uncomfortable and there must be something to help him .

take care ,

Court 

Hi

My husband had his anterior resection by keyhole and post op he suffered from hiccups for 3 days. This was as a result of the gas used during surgery to inflate the abdomen irritating the phrenic nerve which in turn made the diaphragm go into spasm which causes hiccups!

He was very distressed by this but Gaviscon liquid straight from the fridge was his saviour. It gave relief relatively quickly and could be taken regularly. The gas slowly is absorbed back it the body and the irrigation of the phrenic nerve reduces once the gas has gone. My husband did end up with a stomal hernia because of the hiccuping but this was repaired successfully on reversal. He didn’t experience any hiccups after his reversal and he was in hospital for 7 days after both surgeries due to infection for which he was given IV and oral antibiotics.

The discharge nurse from the hospital arranged for my husband to attend our local heath board clinic to have his dressing changed every second day. He had a drain in his stoma reversal wound which was changed and shortened every second day until the wound was too shallow to take a wick and then it was dressed every 2 days for 8 weeks until the wound heal by granulation from the inside out. 

A year later he hasn’t had any problems with his wound and he has recovered well.

Deirdre 

.

I had exactly the same thing , no one could tell me why and no one had come upon this hiccup thing before