George underwent an exploratory laparoscopy early last evening. Fortunately, the surgeon was able to find the source of the blockage and repair it using four small incisions. Apparently a part of his large bowel, the mesentery, had draped over and trapped a part of his small bowel. We don’t know why this happened. The surgeon was able to separate the mesentery from the small bowel and remove the damaged portion of the small bowel. Because he was able to do this laparoscopically George will have a faster recovery (two weeks vs. six) and shouldn’t have to worry about developing adhesions in the future. The concern about adhesions leading to future bowel obstructions was the main reason we wanted to avoid surgery. The surgeon said he wished he had done this procedure when George was admitted, but there was no way to know that then.
I spent the night in an easy chair in George’s room and I am very glad that I did. He has been in pain since the surgery and was supposed to get pain medication every two hours. I had to call for it each time and even then it was always quite late. The surgeon said George will be in the hospital another 72 hours. At least there is now an end in sight.
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