Quality of Life and Adaptation of People With a Colostomy Plug: A Before-After Interventional Study.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine health-related quality of life and adaptation of persons with a colostomy before and after use of a colostomy plug.

Design: Single group before-and-after study.

Subjects And Setting: The study sample comprised 19 people with a colostomy who attended an outpatient clinic João Pessoa, in Paraiba, Brazil. Inclusion criteria were: over 18 years, protruding colostomy, diameter 20 to 45 mm, elimination pattern of up to 3 solid or pasty fecal stools per day, and medical prescription for the use of the colostomy plug.

Methods: Data were collected between November 2018 and February 2019. Three outpatient visits per participant were completed; informed consent and baseline data were collected during clinic visit one. Data collected at baseline included demographic and pertinent clinic data. Stoma specific quality of life was measured using the City of Hope Quality of Life - Ostomy Questionnaire; adaptation to an ostomy was measured using the Scale for the Level of Adaptation of Ostomy Patients (SLAOP). Participants were also taught to use a colostomy plug during this visit. A second visit occurred between the 8th and 10th day of use; participants' ability to use the device was assessed during this visit. A third visit occurred 30 to 35 days after plug use; instruments used to measure adaptation and health-related quality of life were readministered.

Results: Participants who had significantly higher scores for quality of life and adaptation were identified in people who used the plug in all dimensions of the Scale for Level of Adaptation of people with stomas and City of Hope Quality of Life - Ostomy Questionnaire, except for the interdependence mode. Significant, positive and strong correlations were identified between adaptation and quality of life before (r = 0.823; P = .000015) and after (r = 0.808; P = .000028) use of the colostomy plug.

Conclusion: Findings suggest that use of a colostomy plug improved adaptation and quality of life in some patients living with a colostomy.