Cystectomy With Continent Reservoir: What to Expect at Home

Rest when you feel tired. Getting enough sleep will help you recover.

Try to walk each day. Start by walking a little more than you did the day before. Bit by bit, increase the amount you walk. You may use stairs when you return home, but take them slowly. Walking boosts blood flow and helps prevent pneumonia and constipation.

Avoid strenuous activities, such as bicycle riding, jogging, weight lifting, or aerobic exercise, until your doctor says it is okay.

Avoid lifting more than 5 pounds for about 4 weeks or until your doctor says it is okay. This may include a child, heavy grocery bags and milk containers, a heavy briefcase or backpack, cat litter or dog food bags, or a vacuum cleaner.

Avoid bending. If you have to pick something up, bend at your knees (not at your waist) and pick up the object.

Ask your doctor when you can drive again.

You will probably be able to go back to work or your normal routine in 6 to 8 weeks. This depends on the type of work you do and whether you have any further treatment.

You may take a shower. When you shower, keep your catheter taped to your leg. Empty the urine before you start.

Do not take a bath until the catheter has been removed.

If you have a stoma, gently pat the skin around it dry after bathing.

Ask your doctor when it is okay for you to have sex.

You can eat your normal diet. If your stomach is upset, try bland, low-fat foods like plain rice, broiled chicken, toast, and yogurt.

Drink plenty of fluids to avoid becoming dehydrated.

Your doctor will tell you if and when you can restart your medicines. He or she will also give you instructions about taking any new medicines.

If you stopped taking aspirin or some other blood thinner, your doctor will tell you when to start taking it again.

Take pain medicines exactly as directed.

• If the doctor gave you a prescription medicine for pain, take it as prescribed.

• If you are not taking a prescription pain medicine, ask your doctor if you can take an over-the-counter medicine.

If you think your pain medicine is making you sick to your stomach:

• Take your medicine after meals (unless your doctor has told you not to).

• Ask your doctor for a different pain medicine.

If your doctor prescribed antibiotics, take them as directed. Do not stop taking them just because you feel better. You need to take the full course of antibiotics.

If you have strips of tape on the cut (incision) the doctor made, leave the tape on for a week or until it falls off.

Wash the area daily with warm, soapy water, and pat it dry. Don't use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol, which can slow healing. You may cover the area with a gauze bandage if it weeps or rubs against clothing. Change the bandage every day.

Keep the area clean and dry.

You will leak urine during the night for a while, so you will need a pad to absorb the urine (incontinence pad).

To control pain when you cough or sneeze, hold a pillow over your incision.

You will need to wash out your new bladder so mucus does not collect and block it. Your doctor or WOCN will teach you how to do this.

If you have a neobladder:

• You will have a urinary catheter for about 3 weeks. Your doctor or nurse will tell you how to care for it.

• Be sure the catheter is securely taped to your thigh and connected to the large drainage bag most of the time. Use the smaller leg bag only when you go out.

• A little leakage around the catheter is normal.

• Your new bladder does not have a nerve supply, so you will not have an urge that tells you when to urinate. You will need a set time to urinate for the first few months after surgery. Your doctor will tell you how to do this.

• You will have to learn how to use your sphincter and belly muscles to urinate. Your doctor will tell you how to do this and give you exercises to make them strong.

• You may sometimes need to use a catheter to make sure no urine is left in your new bladder. Leaving urine in the bladder can cause kidney problems or infection. Your doctor or nurse will help you with this.

If you have a continent diversion reservoir with stoma:

• Follow your doctor's or WOCN's instructions for caring for your stoma.

• You do not need a bag to collect urine. The new bladder will store urine until you empty it. You do this by placing a small plastic tube into your stoma. You will learn to recognize how it feels when your new bladder is full. Your doctor or WOCN will help you with this.

You passed out (lost consciousness).

You have chest pain, are short of breath, or cough up blood.

You have pain that does not get better after you take pain medicine.

You have loose stitches, or your incision comes open.

You are bleeding from the incision.

You have signs of infection, such as:

• Increased pain, swelling, warmth, or redness.

• Red streaks leading from the area.

• Pus draining from the area.

• A fever.

You are unable to urinate.

You have symptoms of a urinary tract infection. These may include:

• Pain or burning when you urinate.

• A frequent need to urinate without being able to pass much urine.

• Pain in the flank, which is just below the rib cage and above the waist on either side of the back.

• Blood in your urine.

• A fever.

You are sick to your stomach or cannot drink fluids.

You have signs of a blood clot in your leg (called a deep vein thrombosis), such as:

• Pain in your calf, back of the knee, thigh, or groin.

• Redness or swelling in your leg.