Recurring Barbie Butt Re-Opening - Seeking Advice

Hi

I am a 30-year-old female new ostomate (permanent colostomy, and urostomy).

Long story short, I had my surgery to get a cancerous mass removed, which left me with my ostomies plus a Barbie butt.

First surgery where I had everything done, I had dissolvable stitches on my Barbie butt.

Upon my follow-up visit with my plastic surgeon for my Barbie butt, during his examination, the Barbie butt opened back up fully. That following Tuesday I went for surgery again to get it sewn back up with nylon stitches.

My surgeon left them in for nine weeks. I wasn't allowed to sit, etc. I got the nylon stitches removed Feb 2nd

Upon my follow-up visit Feb 17th from when the nylon stitches were removed, everything looks good, except for some granulated overgrown tissue, which he used silver nitrate.

On March 9, I saw my local plastic surgeon at the Sloan Kettering satellite this time instead of going to NY for a follow-up. She saw there was re-opening, maybe about a quarter size about a 1cm; deep opened back up again.

I'm so stressed it's going to get bigger and I'm going to have to go through this again. No sitting, the re-stitching, etc.

Has this happened to anyone else? Any advice or what was done for you?

So, not me personally, but I was just talking about something very similar with a friend I was supposed to hang out with between her appointments at Cleveland Clinic the other day. She was doing hyperbaric treatments daily for a while then her insurance got dropped. But hers reopened and they think it's actually because of hair regrowing down there. They're going to try laser hair removal to see if that helps. Might be worth asking your provider if that could be what's going on with you.

Did you do radiation?

Nope, no radiation and the chemo I went through was 3 months before my surgery.

That's interesting. Ugh, I'm just hoping I don't have to get it restitched again. I just want to sit, hahaha! (My doctor is mega strict on sitting)

Words of Encouragement from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

I had radiation issues, so I did the hyperbaric treatments. It pretty much healed it right up.

Are you keeping tension off of the suture? Meaning the incision can get tugged on and pulled, causing excessive tension on sutures, which causes a bit of strangulation in the incision line, leading to decreased blood supply so it cannot heal properly. The other thing, make sure you're not allergic to the stitches. Hope that's helpful.

It's good to know the nylon stitches were holding better than the dissolvable. My surgeon doesn't like the dissolvable for me because he knows I can't "sit still".

I think he's gonna steel staple me down there, but you know that decision comes from his experience, the know-how.

Keep chin up, butt down, and keep us posted. --Warrior.

I had dissolvable rope used on me.

I had this problem for years. And I was a board certified wound care nurse for 27 years and I still couldn't get it closed. Come to find out, I had a fistula into my vaginal cavity. My physician finally performed a fistulogram, which is dye within the wound seeing where it goes. I had to have complete vaginal plasty, which is plastic reconstruction of the vaginal vault, in order to finally close the wound.

Based on my experience, I recommend requesting from your surgeon that he do a fistulogram with contrast. People who have had Crohn's can get fistula with any other organ or the skin to the top that is a tube somewhat similar to what your gut is made of that connects your gut with some other structure in your abdomen.

I had this problem for years. And I was a board certified wound care nurse for 27 years and I still couldn't get it closed. Come to find out, I had a fistula into my vaginal cavity. My physician finally performed a fistulogram, which is dye within the wound seeing where it goes. I had to have complete vaginal plasty, which is plastic reconstruction of the vaginal vault, in order to finally close the wound.

Based on my experience, I recommend requesting from your surgeon that he do a fistulogram with contrast. People who have had Crohn's can get fistula with any other organ or the skin to the top that is a tube somewhat similar to what your gut is made of that connects your gut with some other structure in your abdomen.