Comparison of postoperative outcomes in ulcerative colitis and familial polyposis patients after ileoanal pouch operations

Background: Pouchitis is a poorly understood inflammatory condition that occurs in the ileal pouches of patients who have undergone the ileal-pouch anal anastomosis after restorative proctocolectomy. This postoperative condition is much more common in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) than familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) colitis. It has been suggested that, owing to pouchitis, UC patients do not attain the same quality of life that FAP patients do after the ileal-pouch anal anastomosis operation. We hypothesized that health-related quality of life does not differ between FAP and UC patients. Methods: We analyzed the postoperative morbidity and gastrointestinal function in 110 consecutive patients having undergone the ileal-pouch anal anastomosis for either UC or FAP at OU Medical Center from 1983 to 2000 by retrospective record review. Health-related quality of life was assessed in 83 patients using the Short Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (SIBDQ) and the Medical Outcome Study Short-Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire. Results: With the exception of pouchitis, there was no difference in perioperative outcome, morbidity, or functional status between UC and FAP patients. The SIBDQ and SF-36 revealed no statistically significant difference between FAP and UC patients. Conclusions: As expected, UC patients are more likely to develop pouchitis. Despite this, our data reveal that both patient groups enjoy a similarly good functional status and quality of life. (C) 2002 Excerpta Medica, Inc. All rights reserved.