Struggles, strengths, and strategies: an ethnographic study exploring the experiences of adolescents living with an ostomy.

Background: Adolescents with IBD requiring ostomy surgery experience perioperative needs that may exceed those of patients experiencing other major abdominal surgery 1. This procedure requires ongoing and vigilant daily care and management. Gastrointestinal symptoms and complications impose psychological and social stresses on young patients 2, and the procedure results in body image changes and daily regimens of self-care.