Abstract
The construction of an intestinal stoma is fraught with complications and should not
be considered a trivial undertaking. Serious complications requiring immediate reoperations
can occur, as can minor problems that will subject the patient to daily and nightly
distress. Intestinal stomas undoubtedly will dramatically change lifestyles; patients
will experience physiologic and psychologic detriment with stoma-related problems,
however minor they may seem. Common complications include poor stoma siting, high
output, skin irritation, ischemia, retraction, parastomal hernia (PH), and prolapse.
Surgeons should be cognizant of these complications before, during, and after stoma
creation, and adequate measures should be taken to avoid them. In this review, the
authors highlight these often seen problems and discuss management and prevention
strategies.
Keywords
stomal complications - ileostomy complications - colostomy complications - enterostomal
therapy - wound ostomy continence
