A stoma is an opening surgically made from the inside of the body to the outside. In this procedure, the intestinal mucosa is brought towards the abdominal wall. A stoma, which is attached to the skin, is formed by suturing the mucosa to the skin. There are different types of stoma procedures performed such as ileostomy and colostomy. Stoma surgery is vital for patients to perform fecal elimination. Stoma Care A stoma is an opening surgically made from the inside of the body to the outside of the body. In this procedure, the intestinal mucosa is brought towards the abdominal wall. The stoma is attached to the skin and is formed by suturing the mucosa to the skin (Taylor, 2011, p1325). Not many stoma operations were performed before 1700. Jean Amoussat, a French surgeon, published a report on stoma operations between 1716 and 1839. In his report he found that 27 operations were performed with only 6 survivors. Due to the documented high mortality rates resulting from surgeries, surgeons were afraid to perform ostomies because of the effect it might have on their reputations. With the development of anesthesia during the 1800s, surgeons began using the diverting colostomy to manage intestinal obstruction. Stomas were initially known as fistulas that developed spontaneously during bowel movements. One surgeon noted the correlation between the development of a fistula and patient survival. The surgeon stated in his journal that surgeons should take lessons from Mother Nature and stoma surgeries have since been planned to improve mortality rates. By 1900, surgeons were able to use autopsies of deceased patients who had undergone ostomy surgery to find out what mistakes had been made. Ostomy surgeries then became realistic...... middle of paper ...... excerpted from http://education.surgery.ufl.edu/Lectures/History of Ostomy Surgery.pdfDuchesne, JC, Wang, Y. , Weintraub, S.L., Boyle, M., & al, e. (2002). Stoma complications: a multivariate analysis/discussion. The American Surgeon, 68(11), 961-6; discussion 966. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/212812289?accountid=158428Reed, Karen S, MSN, DHSc, RN,CNL, CRRN (2012). Grants and blogs: Creating an ostomy experience for nursing students. Rehabilitation Nursing, 37(2), 62-5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1002737895?accountid=158428 Stomata - General Surgery | Quick beep. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.fastbleep.com/medical-notes/surgery/8/8/276Taylor, Carol. Fundamentals of Nursing: The Art and Science of Nursing. 7th ed.Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011. Print.