Formation of adhesions

From: Poutinen, Jay (jpoutine@uwsp.edu)
Tue Jun 5 11:13:59 2001


Here's from a web site article--

http://www.fhradio.org/fm/archives/1994/1746(FM).html

Abdominal pain is a common symptom when there are adhesions involving abdominal organs. In recent U.S. and German studies of women with abdominal and pelvic pain of undefined cause, adhesions were the cause 70 to 80 percent of the time. Surgical removal of the adhesions was effective at providing relief from the pain for a period of one year or longer in only 49 to 58 percent of the individuals. And these results are really quite good. Since surgery created the original problem, it is quite likely that a second surgery to remove adhesions would only provide an opportunity for more adhesions to form. This can indeed happen. But at times, the problems from adhesions are so severe that surgery to remove them is still the best choice.

Adhesions form during the healing process after abdominal surgery or other abdominal injury. However, problems from adhesions may not become apparent for many years because the tissue in your digestive organs is relatively supple and can compensate for the abnormalities in motion and function produced by the adhesions. However, as you get older this tissue becomes less resilient and pain begins.

Family Medicine® is a weekly column. To submit questions, write to John C. Wolf, D.O., Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Grosvenor Hall, Athens, Ohio 45701.


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