I have a fistulotomy scheduled soon, and it will be probably on day#2 of my period - what am I supposed to do? I guess doctors encountered that before, but it's kind of awkward... I'm sure it's not allowed to wear anything down there...

Hi,
I always seem to have my period whenever I have an appointment or surgery!! It really doesn't matter. Just wear a pad, and when you have to get changed into those lovely paper pants for surgery just pop one in there. I've never had an issue.

Good luck x

owmybum, thanks! I guess for them it's not as much of a taboo as it is for us! It just gets bloody anyway :)
thanks for good wishes!

Hi....just wanted to stop by to wish you the best of luck and to tell you that while a fistulotomy sometimes leaves a large open wound, it WILL heal and the chance of recurrence is very low if done properly (through a CRS and NOT a GP) and if you do not have Crohn's (although, if you have Crohn's you shouldn't be getting fistulotomy). I had my fistulotomy on January 7th and it took around 13-14 weeks to fully heal; it was quite deep, but low enough that I didn't need a seton and a straight fistulotomy was done. Depending on the depth and length of the fistula you may have a small "dimple" like scar near where the fistulotomy meets the anus. It may feel weird at first while wiping but it shouldn't give you any problems. One thing I would advise everyone WITHOUT Crohn's to do before/after getting a fistulotomy is to refrain from reading a ton of posts online, as you will hear many horror stories which you are highly unlikely to experience. Just eat a healthy diet with plenty of fiber (perhaps even add a supplement like Metamucil to make the BM's nice and smooth) and vitamins. Refrain from smoking for sure. My surgeon told me I could return to sex and working out two weeks after the surgery, so long as I showered immediately after. Good luck on your recovery.

Hi Cporosus, thanks for the good wishes! Good to hear you're all good now and nice that you stop by here to give courage to the ones who are still dealing with this :)
This is my second fistulotomy, had one last December, my CRS confirmed another one had formed, so he wants to fix that. He never mentioned Chron's and I don't have any symptoms. He's not sure why another one formed, probably it healed outside sooner than it did inside - because of my crazy traveling, I only had two post-op check-ups, so he's not sure when and why it happened. I had that 'dimple' for awhile and thought it will just take longer for that to be fixed, but it did drain and bleed, so it was surely another one. But I really hope it will be fine this time and it will heal properly and I won't have to deal with this any longer!

Good luck on your surgery Garrod!

Thanks, msimon! Got back form the hospital yesterday, stayed a bit longer than the first time, wound was bleeding a lot... I had a cotton tampons in the wound for the bleeding, and removing them was the worst thing I ever experienced so far!!!
Doctor didn't tell much what and how it happened during surgery, but I think he put a seton this time. Got antibiotics (metronidazol) prescribed.

Tomorrow I go for a check-up and will hear more about it. Now dealing with pain and keeping the wound clean, which seems very difficult this time! After BM I soak in a sitzbath several times, changing water, and it still has some feces in the water... I am totally paranoid now about getting an infection!

Glad to hear you made it through yet another surgery Garrod. Now you can move forward! Sounds like you had a more substantial one but hopefully that means they did it right this time and your infection will be gone for good. I know what you mean about worrying about it coming back. Do you soak in plain water or do you add an antiseptic as well? I would think the antibiotics should help with the infection and things will be good this time. Try not to worry. I know it's easily said. Let us know how your check up goes.

Yes.... I hope you heal completely and quickly!

Xx

Thanks to both!
Yes, it was more substantial, and he put seton this time so as to prevent incontinence and make sure it heals inside first. Wound looks good, he said at the check-up. I feel more confident healing will be good this time, I take antibiotics, soak in potassium permanganate, take Miralax and flaxseeds, no painkillers anymore, pain is mild and I can take it. Will give updates later on!