If dietary and lifestyle changes, drug therapy, or other treatments don't relieve the signs and symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), your doctor may recommend surgery.
Surgery for ulcerative colitis. Surgery often eliminates ulcerative colitis. However, it usually involves removing the entire colon and rectum (proctocolectomy).
In most cases, this involves a procedure called an ileoanal pouch anastomosis. This procedure eliminates the need to wear a bag to collect stool. Your doctor creates a pouch at the end of your small intestine. This pouch is then connected directly to your anus, allowing you to pass stool relatively normally.
In some cases, a pouch isn't possible. Instead, surgeons create a permanent opening in your abdomen (ileal stoma) through which stool can pass and be collected in an attached bag.
Surgery for Crohn's disease. Up to half of people with Crohn's disease will require at least one surgery. However, surgery doesn't cure Crohn's disease.
During surgery, the surgeon removes a damaged section of the digestive tract and then reconnects the healthy sections. Surgery can also be used to close fistulas and draining abscesses.
The benefits of surgery for Crohn's disease are usually temporary. The disease often recurs near the reconnected tissue. The best approach is to follow surgery with medications to reduce the risk of recurrence.
