The digestive system breaks down food and gets rid of waste, but sometimes it doesn’t work as it should. When this happens, surgeons can do a procedure called an ostomy (OSS-tuh-mee).
In an end ostomy, the surgeon removes the problem area in the bowel. Then, they bring the healthy end of the bowel to an opening made in the wall of the belly. They stitch the edge of the bowel to the skin to create a stoma (STOE-muh). An ostomy pouch is placed on the outside of the stoma to collect waste. Mucus that forms in the bowel past the stoma will come out the anus (where poop normally leaves the body).
Learn the basics in 45 seconds.
Reviewed by: Larissa Hirsch, MD
Date Reviewed: Oct 1, 2022
