CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Vol 15, 252-256, Copyright
© 1965 by American Cancer Society
A Simplified Method of Irrigation of the Colonic Stoma
Allen H. Postel M.D.1,
W. Robson N. Grier M.D.2, and
S. Arthur Localio M.D.3
1 Instructor, Department of Surgery, New York University School of Medicine, New York, N.Y.
2 Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery, New York University School of Medicine.
3 Professor of Clinical Surgery, New York University School of Medicine.
The advantages of the bulb syringe method over the conventional enema bag techniques of irrigation are: (1) the apparatus is simple and compact and requires a minimum of cleaning; and (2) the short nozzle of the bulb and the small amount of water used avoid introduction of large quantities of fluid into the proximal portion of the colon. Trapping of this water in the colon in the conventional irrigation may be responsible for the prolonged irrigation time and may also result in spillage or accidents later in the day. Bulb syringe irrigation is used to stimulate the fecal return rather than to wash it out.
Members of the nursing staff and most patients are satisfied with the bulb syringe technique. A follow-up study is now in progress to determine whether or not the method will prove practicable for a long-term period in patients having undergone a colostomy.