I have an RV fistula and have had seton drain about 5 months. I see my surgeon tomorrow to discuss options for treatment. As far as I understand I can take the drains out and see if it will heal on it's own or opt for surgical repair.Curious if anyone has experienced good luck with either. I have also heard about endoscopic repair for fistula and wondered if anyone has tried that. Thank you
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I've had a perianal seton for 19 months.
Some people find their fistulas aren't too bothersome without a drain. Some start to abscess without them.
Fistulas rarely heal on their own, because they aren't seen by the body as "foreign." It's like, "Oh. That's just normal bowel tissue, or whatever." The outside hole may try to heal over, which can cause a reabscess, as the fistula will still churn out its junk, and get trapped, but the tract itself is very rare to just heal spontaneously.
My CRS won't do surgical stuff to mine, as he worries about sphincter compromise in laying open that area, but RV fistulas might be a different ball of wax. My GI is giving Humira a whirl, in the hopes it is part of some IBD umbrella... So I'm trying to stay hopeful.
Some people find their fistulas aren't too bothersome without a drain. Some start to abscess without them.
Fistulas rarely heal on their own, because they aren't seen by the body as "foreign." It's like, "Oh. That's just normal bowel tissue, or whatever." The outside hole may try to heal over, which can cause a reabscess, as the fistula will still churn out its junk, and get trapped, but the tract itself is very rare to just heal spontaneously.
My CRS won't do surgical stuff to mine, as he worries about sphincter compromise in laying open that area, but RV fistulas might be a different ball of wax. My GI is giving Humira a whirl, in the hopes it is part of some IBD umbrella... So I'm trying to stay hopeful.
My rv fistula was repaired using the gracilis muscle reposition. This was performed after a fourth degree laceration procedure failed. The gracilis procedure was a complete success! I had it done in 1985.
Thanks for the replies. Megan O- The gracilis muscle repair was suggested to me by my surgeon. Sounded very scary and super invasive. Can you tell me more about it? Did you lose a lot of strength in your leg? Is there a large incision? Thanks so much.
Right? It sounded crazy scary to me at the time also but if it could fix my fistula I was willing to try it. I have three scars on my inner thigh. First one is just up from my knee, it's 3 inches long. Midway up, there is a 2 inch scar. At the very top of my inner thigh the scar is about 4 inches. In that upper area, my thigh is a bit larger, since that is where the muscle is doubled back on itself. Personally, the scars never bothered me, the slight bulge, does rankle a little, but truthfully, you would almost have to know what I had done to notice it. There is absolutely no loss of strength. I run, hike, work out with weights, ride horses, you name it. It's a big decision, but I am so glad I did it. If you think of any more questions, ask away 