Hi everybody, I've been a UC sufferer for 5 years now. I've never had a remission. Not even close. I'm seriously considering surgery within the next 2 months. I have a surgeon here in Hawaii who has had 29 years of experienced, googled him and found out that he's won the connelly award for 2009 but has admitted he only does UC surgery 2-3 times a year. He wants to do a 1 step surgery. I don't know whether to trust this advice or not. What do you all think? 1 step or 2?

It's my opinion this is not enough. You want a surgeon who is very, very experienced in this particular surgery. There are many in California and you might consider coming here for the surgery. This is not a time to take chances. Having the surgery in one or two steps should be the call of your surgeon based upon his/her opinion of the prospective results be anticipates. If you want the names of reputable surgeons in California, just ask! Best wishes!

hmmm,.id get more opinions on this site about the 1 step...i had a 2 step and was considering a 1 step at the time but i was told that its better to let the pouch heal for 5 months so i chose the 2 step,..this is for life so why take the chance of something happening..I had the bag for 5 months,..its really not bad at all...i just didnt want it forever.

CeCe, I appreciate your comment along with Drew's. My sister had UC also and did her's at U.C. Berckly. Her surgeon is retired. I'm eager to hear some recommendations. Thanks guys for the post.

I had 3 steps , it was the safest thing for me.
after the first surgery my rectum had time to heal , and by the second surgery it was in very good condition for the J pouch surgery.

I thing because of that I felt great right after the Third (Takedown) surgery and never had complications like leakage , high BM frequency.
from day one my J pouch worked perfectly , I didn't even have to get up in the night.
in the first week I had 6-8 BMs a day , now after 5 months I go 3-4 times a day.

I had the bag for 6 months , while I had it I did "Butt Exercises" (explained here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKfAsjjEZmo)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: kobi,

I would not be too concerned about how many surgeries he does for UC, but how many 1-step j-pouches has he done. 29 years experience is nothing to sneeze at, but you need to be comfortable about his skill for your own personal case.

As to whether or not a 1 or 2 step is best for you goes, I really do not think that the advice of a bunch of lay people is what you need. Granted, we are a very savvy group, but we really do not know what your personal medical history is and we are not surgeons. Standards of care change all the time. 20-30 years ago, a 1-step was unheard of, but times change and so do surgical techniques. It all depends on the status of your colon at the time of surgery and whether or not you are on high dose prednisone. Plus, even if your surgeon intends to do a 1-step, he will not know for sure if it is doable until he gets in there and sees the conditions himself. The main thing is that whether it is a 1-step, 2-step, or 3-step, complications can happen. You need to trust your surgeon to know what is appropriate for you. There are many, many people who have had 2-steps and had complications, so do not assume that having a 2-step is safer (particularly with a less skilled surgeon).

Jan