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PURPOSE: To see if road distance to hospital influences stoma reversal rate, time from index operation to stoma reversal, and occurrence of permanent stoma.

METHODS: Data from all diagnosed cases of rectal cancer from three counties in northern Sweden were extracted from the Swedish Rectal Cancer Registry. The three counties are sparsely populated, with a population density roughly one fifth the average density in Sweden. Distances to nearest, operating, and largest hospital were obtained using Google Maps™. Matched data on socioeconomic variables were retrieved from Statistics Sweden.

RESULTS: In univariate logistic regression analysis, patients living closer to the operating hospital had a higher likelihood of non-reversal than those living farther away (OR 0.3; 95% CI 0.12-0.76). However, no difference was seen in the multivariate analysis. Of the 717 cases included, 54% received a permanent stoma and 38% a defunctioning stoma at index surgery. The reversal rate of a defunctioning stoma was 83%. At follow-up, 61% still had a stoma, 89% of these were permanent, and 11% non-reversed defunctioning stomas. Median time to stoma reversal was 287 days (82-1557 days). Of all 227 stoma reversals, 77% were done more than 6 months after index surgery.

CONCLUSIONS: Longer distance to hospital is not a risk factor for non-reversal of a defunctioning stoma. Only 23% had their defunctioning stoma reversed within 6 months after index surgery. Future studies aiming to determine reversal rate need to extend their follow-up time in order to receive accurate results.

INTRODUCTION: Having a stoma after bowel surgery is associated with inferior quality of life (QoL). The county of Västerbotten in Sweden is a large and sparsely populated area. Competence regarding stoma-related problems is restricted to hospital-based stoma nurses and surgeons. Patients living in rural areas instead largely rely on their general practitioner. The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of distance to nearest hospital on the QoL of rectal cancer patients who receive a stoma at index surgery.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study performed in Västerbotten county, Sweden. Validated questionnaires assessing QoL (EORTC QLQ C-30 and CR-29) were sent to all rectal cancer patients diagnosed in 2007-2014 who received a stoma at index surgery. Socioeconomic variables were retrieved from Statistics Sweden. Distance from home to the nearest hospital was determined using Google Maps™. The effect of distance was assessed using two separate models, the first based on distance to the nearest hospital and the second based on access to a stoma care nurse. Within the first model all patients living in rural areas constituted the study group while all patients living in non-rural areas constituted the control group. Within the second model all patients with no access to stoma care nurse constituted the study group while those with such access constituted the control group.

RESULTS: The response rate was 69%. In the first model the rectal cancer patients living further away from the nearest hospital reported significantly more pain and sore skin (p=0.032 and p=0.003, respectively). When considering patients who still had a stoma, those living further away also reported more stoma care problems (p=0.004) and a poorer global QoL (p=0.038). In the second model, access or not to a stoma care nurse had no impact on stoma care problems or QoL.

CONCLUSION: Rectal cancer patients receiving a stoma at index surgery and who came from rural areas reported more pain than those living closer to the nearest hospital. The group of rural patients who still had a stoma also reported more stoma care problems and a poorer quality of life. To help these patients, general practitioners are encouraged to arrange an extra follow-up visit focusing on the individual patient's problems.

Purpose: To determine whether prophylactic mesh in a sublay position has an impact on the quality-of-life (QoL) of patients receiving an end colostomy.

Methods: One-year follow-up of patients from the STOMAMESH trial, a randomized controlled double-blinded multicenter study. Patients were randomized to either prophylactic synthetic mesh with a cruciform incision in the center, placed in sublay position, or no prophylactic mesh. Patients attended a 1-year visit and responded to the questionnaires EORTC QLQ C-30 and CR-38. The impact of having a mesh on QoL was determined by comparing a group of patients receiving a mesh with a group without. A subgroup analysis was made depending on whether a PSH was clinically present or not.

Results: Of the 232 randomized patients, 211 patients reached the 1-year clinical follow-up. The response rate of these 211 patients was 70%. No differences were seen in global QoL between the groups. Mesh patients reported significantly less stoma-related problems (p = 0.014) but more sexual problems in males (p = 0.022). When excluding patients with a clinical diagnosis of PSH, the difference in stoma-related problems remained while no significant difference was seen regarding sexual problems in males.

Conclusions: When forming an end colostomy, prophylactic synthetic mesh in a sublay position did not affect global QoL at 1-year follow-up, but stoma-related problems were fewer even in the presence of a clinically diagnosed PSH.