Rectovaginal fistula: first-hand report |
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Amy Hunter has posted a sobering account of her vaginoplasty complications.
Chronic pain, heavy narcotics addiction, and bouts of deep depression are the hushed legacies I have battled. Left with a possibly permanent colostomy and a painful, fibrous lump between my legs where a vagina should be, it is nearly impossible not to revisit the devastation daily. It is now two and a half years later. [...] A slight tear in my colon from a retractor, was all that was necessary to compromise an otherwise flawless procedure. I had developed a rectal-vaginal fistula. This problem happens to natal women too, often as a complication from difficult childbirth or certain cancers. Frankly, the success rate for repairing the defect in natal women is not good either. It often takes multiple surgeries for them too. What makes it even harder for the transwoman?
Full article:
Sex Reassignment Surgery: When things go wrong
http://www.bilerico.com/2010/06/sex_reassignment_surgery_when_things_go_wrong.php
See also:
Potential complications of vaginoplasty
http://www.tsroadmap.com/physical/vaginoplasty/complications.html
Living With A Rectovaginal Fistula (via Anne Vitale)
http://www.avitale.com/Rectovaginal_Fistula.html