Originally published on ProWrestlingSheet.

Ric Flair is scheduled for surgery next week ... but not to remove a colostomy bag technically, as initially reported -- this according to his fiancé, Wendy Barlow.

Barlow tells Pro Wrestling Sheet that following Flair's health scare last summer he was required to undergo an ileostomy procedure, as opposed to a colostomy.

The American Cancer Association defines an ileostomy as an opening in the belly (abdominal wall) that’s made during surgery. During this type of procedure, the lowest part of the small intestine is brought through this opening to form a stoma ... usually on the lower right side of the abdomen.

While the two sound similar, a colostomy bag applies to the large intestine (not the small).

Now, Flair is hoping to reverse the stoma so he'll no longer be forced to drain the pouch.

The procedure is scheduled for July 9, with pre-op on July 6, and Barlow says she'll be staying at the hospital all week with "The Nature Boy" while he's there.