Small & Large Bowel Surgery

Small & Large Bowel Surgery

A bowel resection is a surgical procedure to remove a portion of your small or large intestine, that has been damaged by a disease.

During the surgery, the diseased section of your intestine is removed and the two healthy ends are joined together.

Small Bowel Surgery

This surgery is recommended to treat a stricture, which is a narrowing in a section of the intestine that occurs when inflammation from Crohn’s disease causes the wall of your intestine to thicken.

Strictures that are left untreated can lead to blockages, which prevent stool from passing through your intestine.

The surgeon makes a cut of 6 to 8 inches (15.2 to 20.3 centimeters) in your mid-belly. The diseased part of your small intestine is located and removed.

Large Bowel Surgery

This surgery is similar to the small bowel resection, except it’s performed to remove diseased portions of your large intestine commonly referred to as the colon but includes both the colon and rectum.

As with small bowel resection, Crohn’s disease reoccurs about half the time after large bowel resection, usually at the site where the intestine was connected.

The surgeon makes a cut of 6 to 8 inches (15.2 to 20.3 centimeters) in your lower belly. The organs in your belly are examined to see if there are any problems. The diseased part of your large bowel is located and removed. Some lymph nodes may also be removed.