Umbilical colostomy: a better intestinal stoma

This study was undertaken to evaluate our experience with umbilical colostomy. There were 101 cases available for review. Four patients had major complications that necessitated reoperation, an incidence of 3.9%. One patient was operated on for necrosis of the stoma, one for retraction, and two for periostomal evisceration of omentum and small bowel. Three patients had minor strictures requiring digital dilatation, and one needed minor revision under local anesthesia. No patient had a peristomal hernia or prolapse, making this a distinctly better colostomy than the conventional left-lower-quadrant colostomy. The ease and comfort in the care of this colostomy were evident during follow-up visits. We feel that this procedure has all the advantages of a conventional matured colostomy and has extra advantages of easy accessibility and absence of peristomal hernias and prolapse. For any elderly patient who needs a permanent colostomy, umbilical location of the stoma offers distinct advantages.