Types of stomas
Stoma is a Greek word meaning mouth or opening. During stoma or ostomy surgery, the surgeon brings a portion of the bowel out to the surface of the abdomen to form a stoma to divert the stool or urine. A discreet odour-proof pouching system is worn on the abdomen to collect the urine or stool.
A stoma may be permanent or temporary depending on the reason for the surgery. Many times a stoma is formed temporarily to allow the bowel to heal.
What do stomas look like?
Stomas are made from a portion of the bowel. Our page on surgeries has information about the different types of ostomies.
Stomas are reddish pink and always moist, like the inside of your mouth. There is no sensation or feeling when you touch your stoma because it does not have nerve endings. Since there are blood vessels very close to the surface of the stoma, sometimes when you wipe or clean the stoma it will bleed slightly. This is normal, and not a cause for concern.
End stomas are made when a person has had surgery to make a urostomy, or when a person has had a Hartmann’s Procedure to make a colostomy.
Stool will come out of one of the openings of a loop stoma. The other opening may produce mucus.