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Ileal Pouch Anal Anastomosis: Pregnancy—Before, During and After

  • 2008 ssat other
  • Published:
Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery

Abstract

Most females having surgery for ulcerative colitis are young and in the childbearing age years. Quality of life is usually improved following surgery as is sexual function. The improvement is likely related to an improvement in the physical well-being of individuals. On the other hand, recent evidence suggests that surgery has a significant negative effect on the ability of females to conceive, likely due to adhesion formation. Most women who do conceive have few or no problems with the pregnancy. Although some surgeons recommend that women have a caesarian section rather than delivering vaginally to avoid the risk of injury to the anal sphincter, there is little evidence to support this policy. In conclusion, most women can be assured that their overall well-being and sexual function will be improved following surgery for ulcerative colitis but must be counseled that they may experience difficulties conceiving. Strategies to minimize this complication are needed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Room 449, Mount Sinai Hospital, 600 University Avenue, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X5, Canada

    Robin S. McLeod

  2. Departments of Surgery and Health, Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Robin S. McLeod

  3. Division of General Surgery, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Robin S. McLeod

Authors
  1. Robin S. McLeod
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Correspondence to Robin S. McLeod.

Additional information

This paper was originally presented as part of the SSAT/AGA/ASGE State-of-the-Art Conference on Optimal Timing of Surgery for IBD at the SSAT 49th Annual Meeting, May 2008, in San Diego, CA, USA. The other articles presented in the conference were Hodin RA, Introduction: Optimal Timing of Surgery for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases; Rubin DT, An Updated Approach to Dysplasia in IBD; Sands BE, Fulminant Colitis; and Fleshman JW, Pyogenic Complications of Crohn’s Disease, Evaluation and Management.

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McLeod, R.S. Ileal Pouch Anal Anastomosis: Pregnancy—Before, During and After. J Gastrointest Surg 12, 2150–2152 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11605-008-0671-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11605-008-0671-z

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