Urostomy: Staying Healthy

A few words on diet

You don’t have to follow a special diet or stay away from any foods. But be aware that asparagus and some other foods may cause your pee to smell or look different.

Drinking plenty of water

Drinking plenty of water will help prevent pee odor. It will help to flush out your urinary tract bacteria and prevent infections like UTIs. It will also prevent dehydration, which means that too much fluid is lost from the body. If you get dehydrated, less pee will flow from your stoma. You may feel thirsty and tired. And your skin and mucous membranes may get dry. You may also get stomach cramps. Here are some tips:

• Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day, unless your doctor has told you to drink less fluid.

• If you do get dehydrated, try to drink plenty of fluids.

• Call your doctor if you can’t keep fluids down because of an upset stomach or vomiting.

• Talk to your doctor before you start any dietary supplements, juices like cranberry juice, or herbal drinks. They may interfere with your medicines, produce side effects, change the acidity of your urine, or impair your kidney's function.

Taking a shower or bath

You can take a shower or bath with or without your pouch. Keep in mind:

• It's best to empty the pouch before you shower, bathe, or do other water activities.

• If you want to bathe without your pouch, you may want to do it in the morning. This is when your pee output is less. Remember, pee will come out of your stoma. There's no way to stop the output. Make sure that your skin is cool and dry before you put back your pouch.

• At other times of the day, showering is a better choice than bathing. Any pee that flows from your stoma will run down the drain.

• If you do use soap, be sure to rinse your skin well. Soap won't irritate your stoma. But it may contain oils and additives that can keep the pouch from sticking to the skin.

• Don’t use bath oil around the stoma. It can make it hard to get the pouch to stick.

When you have a checkup

You may need to see your doctor every few months at first. After that, your stoma should be checked once a year. Keep in mind:

• Anytime your doctor needs a pee sample, it should be taken from your stoma. This will be done with a special tube (catheter). Don' take a pee sample from your pouch yourself.

• When you see your doctor, bring extra supplies. This is helpful in case you need to change your pouch.

• Always let your doctor know right away if you have a problem with your urinary tract or stoma.

Call 911

Call 911or get medical care right away if you have:

• A deep cut in the stoma. This means that the opening gets big enough for your intestines to come through it.

• A lot of bleeding from the stoma opening.

• A moderate amount of blood in the pouch at several emptyings.

• Continuous bleeding where the stoma and skin meet.

• Severe skin irritation or deep sores.

• An abnormal change in stoma size and color.

• A fever and a strong odor from the stoma.

When to call your doctor

Contact your doctor if you have any symptoms of a urinary tract infection, such as:

• Belly pain.

• Blood in your pee.

• Cloudy or bad-smelling pee for more than a week.

• Less urine output than usual.

• A fever of 100.4°F (38 °C) or higher, or as advised by your doctor.

• Chills.

• Kidney pain.

• The skin around your stoma has:

  • White, gray, brown, or dark red bumps on it.

  • Bumps around a hair follicle that are filled with pus.

  • Sores with uneven edges.

Getting support

Adjusting to a urostomy takes time. But your family and friends can help you. Your surgeon; wound, ostomy, and continence nurse; and other health care providers can answer your questions. They can help you find a support group. This is a group of people who share the same concerns or problems. You can also contact these organizations for more information and support:

•   United Ostomy Associations of America at www.uoaa.org

• American Cancer Society at www.cancer.org

• Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurses Society (WOCN) at www.wocn.org