recto-vaginal fistula due to childbirth with continuing issues after 9 years

DO not lift anything heavy or stain at all....make sure you are otherwise healthy ( i was anemic) --- have faith, and this will take time for it to fully heal and "adhere"...

Hello to all I have been dealing with this rectrovaginal fistula for almost two years now. I had my first surgery last year and it didn't work. A year later I was scheduled again for surgery. Finally I was able to get the second surgery last week (june 4, 2014) and I am so afraid that it didn't work. Reason being is because I still feel gas coming through the front. I haven't seen any sign of bowels yet but I'm still swollen down there. Just wondering if any of you that had a successful repair if this was normal to still be passing gas through the vagina? Any feedback would be appreciated .

Hi When did u get repair? How big it was? Who's ur surgeon?

Hi! I had my first and only surgery in August or 2013. I still have a few problems and do have gas coming through but no poop. I will not have surgery again no matter what because it was too much pain. As far as I'm concerned im fixed because of no bowel movement coming through. I can tolerate the gas. Hope that helps.

I also have RVF after delivering my baby super fast (she was a whopping 9 lbs). I've seen a coliorectal surgeon and am currently told to wait till I'm done having kids to have it repaired. I also live in Ontario Canada and am curious who did your surgery?

Can you please tell me the link for Facebook group? Just had my second failed attempt at repair.

I am having this issue now. Did it ever heal? Please tell me it gets better.

If you come from a 3rd world country like me and have a 4th degree laceration while having everyone around you including yourself completely ignorant as many reject you including the look on your Gyn face when he goes down there and sees some leaks, then I tell you must count yourself lucky to be here (US). Not to say that the women in the 1st world country do not suffer, but just to say many still need to be educated. This begins with pregnancy. In my case my baby was 5k 80gram that is plus 11 pounds. I labor from Sunday, no epi, had baby Wednesday 3am. Baby's head came out and shoulders couldn't come out and so he developed bell's Palsy. I had just turn 17 at the time. Young women are given to marriage as young as 13 and so I was considered old enough. The embarrassment of leaking feces, friends left me, some even said my problem could have been as a result of anal sex which was a taboo I must say, no one wanted me around because I couldn't control even gas. Sex? oh no I could even think about it for years. The short of the long is I was finally repaired when I came to the US, I lives like that for 5 years being a reject. I'd like to encourage you that you are not alone, change Dr if you need to, there is help out there. My repair was done in 2005 at the children's hospital, it took a while to heal. The after effect of the surgery is I have become very sensitive down there I guess it is just fear, I cannot imagine having any kind of trauma in the area, I am married, my husband knows my story and he is so gentle. You are not alone, there is help at least for being in this part of the world we must appreciate otherwise, just imagine what many other women are going through in a 3rd world country considering very poor hygiene, not enough water and soap, body sprays etc.. Check out this movie "Dry" all about fistula, and ignorance. I totally could relate, I did tear just to warn you. Good luck.

Thanks for sharing the Dr. And location. I visit Florida annually from Canada... Its been 5 years, 3 repairs... Still not fixed.. Maybe I need to go outside Canada!

I had failed surgery just found out today. RV fistula from childbirth. I'm devestaed. Can you pls share the doctors info. I'm willing to travel. Thank you

Hi! I had my lb 19weeks ago and suffered a 4th degree tear. I am concerned I have a rvf as when I go to pass wind the wind rolls forward...most of the time I can control my wind or quieten it that it comes out at the back but I'm scared that the rolling forward wind is a fistula. Has anyone had the blue dye test? In n.ireland we don't really have that test but I was thinking I could try it at home with diluted food colouring? Any advice would be much appreciated!

Hi! I have just been diagnosed with this post labour after 3 months of suffering serious pain. I would love to talk to someone so positive like you who has been through similar and seen the end result ? I keep reading too many horror stories and feeling very down.

For your following pregnancy did you opt for a csec or vaginal birth??

Did you end up having a vaginal birth?? I am wondering this because I too had a specialist tell me that the size of RVF wouldn't grow if I give birth again but that once I was done having babies I'd have to get it fixed.

I too had a recto-vaginal fistula from 4th degree tears. (Dr. did not believe in episiotomy and I wasn't aware of that. After all of this occurred he had said, I knew that your perineum was small.) This made me very angry. No one had believed that I was going to the bathroom from the back to the front. Not even the Dr. who caused it by either not cutting me or sewing me up improperly. He suggested that I just needed to go to the bathroom and that I should give myself an enema. This landed me right in the emergency room. The medicine went right in and along with feces came right out of the surface of my vagina. After the hospital diagnosed me with what I had already figured out I had by reading up on it online, They fought with my Dr. over the phone who was convinced that this wasn't the case. HE WAS WRONG. He had missed it in his examination. How, you ask?? How did my dumb Dr. miss a surface fistula?? Your guess is as good as mine.

I had to wear adult diapers for 6 months until I was healed enough for repair surgery. (This was all in 2013) I had the number 3 Dr. in all of America do my surgery. He did an amazing job. The fistula has not come back, however, I have noticed that my bladder doesn't "Void" completely and I do have some new problems with burning, going to the bathroom. I have to see a GI and Urologist to check up on it. Chance it could be related to something else but no problems prior to this. My new gyno says that although most docs repair the outside (or the fistula) they don't examine afterward to see if they have affected anything else. So, get a great Dr. who is one of the best, if you can, to do your repair, then ask him afterward if he can do some advanced screening to make sure that everything else repaired properly.

I remember feeling dirty (although I never, believe it or not, got an infection from this. I can remember thinking, I'm sure to get one, we are supposed to wipe from front to back and now my back is going into my front?!! I was afraid I would surely go septic and just die.) But, I also remember, loving my son so much that whilst wearing those diapers I thought, if I really have to be broken forever at least I have him.

I hope that everyone here finds an answer!! I was just hoping to provide a little hope as it is totally possible (even with the poor statistics for repair and recurrence )