From Blow-Outs to Bowel Control
Changing messy diapers is a fact of life for anyone who has a baby. But for Mike and Kim Sipowicz, this task was beyond messy—it was epic. Since the day he was born, their son, Saul, had explosive bowel movements that soiled his clothes, his sheets, the furniture and carpet. And that wasn’t all. Saul was bloated and uncomfortable and vomited frequently.
Tests at a local hospital in west Texas led to a diagnosis of Hirschsprung disease. This complex condition causes partial or total obstructions in certain sections of the bowel, and problems passing gas and stool.
Saul’s first surgery
Like most children with Hirschsprung disease, Saul needed a “pull through” surgery. This involved removing the diseased section of the colon, and connecting the end of the healthy section to the anus. Saul had the surgery as a baby. His symptoms eased at first, then worsened. “Saul’s surgeon said he could do another pull-through procedure, but that a repeat surgery carried a lot of risk,” Kim says. “It was beyond his comfort zone. He recommended that we see Dr. Jason Frischer at the Cincinnati Children’s Colorectal Center. A few months later Saul, my husband and I traveled to Cincinnati for our first appointment.”
Dr. Frischer, a pediatric colorectal surgeon, performed the repeat pull-through in October 2014. Pretty soon Saul’s cheerful personality began to shine through. “Saul was a different kid after his surgery,” Kim says. “Before, his stomach was so bloated it looked like he had a basketball in there. The care he received at Cincinnati Children’s made a big difference in how he felt and acted.”