| ABDOMINAL SURGERY |
| What are abdominal surgery done for? |
| Most of the abdominal surgery done by the department are for cancers. Infrequently they are performed for conditions such as diverticular disease, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, chronic constipation or rectal prolapse. |
| How is the surgery done? |
|
The cut is made through the abdomen. This may be vertically downwards or horizontally across your abdomen, depending on the nature of the disease. The diseased part of the colon is then approached. The blood vessels that supply this part of the colon is cut and tied off. If this is an operation for cancer, the lymph nodes are also carefully removed. Removing part of the colon is called colectomy. Numerous names of operation such as right hemicolectomy, left hemicolectomy and sigmoid colectomy all refers to removing different part of the colon. |
| Is a stoma always necessary? |
| NO. Most operations do not require a stoma. |