What is a proctocolectomy?
Proctocolectomy is a surgical procedure in which the colon (in whole or in part) and the rectum are removed.
Proctocolectomy treats the following conditions:
- Inflammatory bowel disease;
- Colorectal cancer and precancerous conditions.
This surgical procedure may be prescribed in the following clinical cases:
- Tissue damage due to ischemia;
- Complicated diverticulitis;
- Traumatic injury;
- Severe constipation.
The goal of proctocolectomy is to improve the patient's quality of life, especially when chronic and progressive diseases are recorded in the anamnesis.
The type of operation is determined by the surgeon depending on the specific clinical case.
Like other types of intestinal resection surgery, during proctocolectomy, the segment of the organ that is too damaged and no longer functional or the disease is life-threatening is removed.
Today, a large percentage of the procedure is performed using a modern laparoscopic or robotic surgical method.
Source:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22659-proctocolectomy
