Indiana Pouch

The first week after your surgery your stoma may look dark or bruised, look swollen or blister-like or have spongy or yellow tissue around it. This tissue will peel off in a few days and start to look more normal.

A normal healthy stoma looks soft, moist, red or pink and shiny and should be flush with the skin. The skin around your stoma should look like the rest of the skin on your abdomen. It should be free of rashes, redness, scratches and bruising.

Typically, patients are sent home with a “suprapubic” catheter in the abdomen and possibly a small tube in the new stoma, both helping drain the pouch of urine and mucus for several weeks.

Your nurses in the hospital or homecare will also teach you how to take care of your stoma and catheterize your new Indiana Pouch, once the tubes are taken out. Usually, you will begin by catheterizing every two hours for the first week or so, gradually increasing the time between catheterizations as the pouch begins to stretch. Catheters are available at home healthcare or other medical supply stores.