Diverticulitis Surgery Recovery

Diverticulitis is a medical condition, characterized by mild to severe abdominal pain and tenderness in the lower left abdomen. It is caused due to infection or inflammation of the bulging pouches (diverticula) present in the large intestine or other parts of the gastrointestinal tract. If diagnosed in the early stages, effective treatment is done with medications, following a diverticulitis diet and making lifestyle changes. However, surgery becomes a necessity for patients with chronic ailment and those who are non-responsive to medications and diet. The diverticulitis surgery recovery time varies with respect to surgery type and patient's health condition.

The type of surgery appropriate for diverticulitis patient is decided according to the number of attacks, general health and the presence of underlying diseases (if any). During a conventional diverticulitis surgery, a part of the sigmoid colon is removed after making incision in the abdomen (partial colectomy). In recent times, a less invasive laparoscopy method is followed for removing the diseased colon and reconnecting the healthy parts. For patients requiring successive surgeries, colostomy is performed in between the procedures, so as to allow prompt recovery.

On an average, 6 percent patients diagnosed with diverticulitis require surgical treatment. As the episode for diverticulitis attacks becomes more frequent when one grows older, diverticulitis surgery is more common in people who are above 40 years old. In this age group, the diverticulitis recovery time is usually longer. Also, younger patients who complain of unbearable diverticulitis symptoms and those who have been diagnosed with fistula (severe inflammation causing connection of colon with adjacent organs) are candidates for diverticulitis surgical procedure.

When traditional and laparoscopic colectomy procedures are compared, it is found that surgery complications are higher and diverticulitis surgery recovery time is longer in case of conventional method. Nevertheless, open surgery is the ultimate option for severe cases of diverticulitis. After the operation, a patient is required to stay in the hospital for 4-7 days. Whereas for candidates with non-invasive surgery, hospital stay lasts for 2 days or more. During the hospital stay after diverticulitis surgery, the candidates will be monitored for pain symptoms, infections and other surgery complications.

Immediately after diverticulitis surgery, feeding is done via intravenous application, which is then replaced with liquid diet and soft foods. If required, pain killers are prescribed for managing painful signs. The postoperative diverticulitis diet plan is based on low residue food items, or in other words, foods containing low amount of fibers. By doing so, food digestion occurs easily and the intestines are given sufficient time for healing. Other guidelines for speeding up the recuperation are taking enough rest, refraining from strenuous exercises, not lifting heavy objects and adopting relaxing activities.

In the recovery period, candidates are expected to follow proper postoperative care as suggested by the surgeon. This will help in quick healing of the incision sites and reduce surgery associated complications. The time required for achieving complete recovery from diverticulitis surgery varies from one candidate to another. Overall, the hospital stay and recovery period are shortened considerably with the intervention of laparoscopic technique. In general, patients can resume their normal activities within 1½-2 months after diverticulitis surgery.

In case of two successive diverticulitis surgeries, the patient needs to wait for about 2 months to attend the second surgical procedure. The period may be extended in case of medical complications from the previous surgery. Provided that long-term dietary changes are made, while refraining from unhealthy lifestyle habits, most candidates achieve full diverticulitis surgery recovery without requiring multiple procedures. As per medical experts, the survival rate for patients who have undergone non-urgent diverticulitis surgery is about 99 percent.