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Expanded Colon Essay

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A 22year old Chinese man was finally relieved of faeces that had accumulated over 20 years. The man had been constipated throughout his life according to the report. His constipation was never fully relieved by the use of laxatives or other medications till surgeons intervened by opening up the abdomen to remove the poop and extremely large colon. The 3-hour operation was successful. According to the doctors, the man was ‘’nine months pregnant’’ and looked like he ‘’could explode at any time.’’ Thankfully, he is expected to recover from this painful, distressing and embarrassing condition. Why did he become severely constipated? He had a condition called Hirschsprung’s disease (HIRSH-sproongz). This is present at the time the child is born. …show more content…

This results in accumulation over time. This may harden, completely blocking the passage of stools. Unfortunately, for the young man, the accumulation continued for years leading to the ‘birth’ of faeces weighing 12kg. The expanded colon called ‘mega colon’ is one of the complications of Hirschsprung’s disease. Some of the other complications include: Perforation Bleeding Ulcers Infection of the intestines (enterocolities) which is life threatening In view of these complications, there may be a need to surgically remove the segment of the bowel with missing nerves and reduce the length of the colon too. When Should a Baby pass the first Poop The baby is expected to pass the first stool known as ‘meconium’ within 24 to 48 hours after birth. Meconium consists of what the baby ingested while in the womb. It includes mucus and amniotic fluid. The arrival of meconium is a good sign of a functioning digestive system. A parent should become worried if a full term baby fails to pass meconium in 48 hours. There may be delay in premature babies 1 out of 3 fails to pass stool within 48 hours. However, almost all premature babies should have passed stool by the ninth

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