Hernia Treatment

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• QHow is a hernia treated?

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  A Dr. Maria F. Castilla, MD , Surgery, answered on behalf of Fawcett Memorial Hospital

  There are several different treatment options for hernias.  If you do not have any symptoms with a hernia, you may not need any treatment.

  Nonsurgical treatment options include supportive undergarments (hernia trusses or abdominal binders) that you wear to help keep a hernia from sticking out or getting bigger.

  Surgery is the most common treatment option. The current recommended best therapy for repair is to close the hole made by the hernia, and then add a mesh to secure it. Adding mesh lowers your risk of recurrence to less than 8%. Without mesh, the chance of the hernia returning increases to 30%.

  Hernia repair surgery may be done in three different ways.

  • Open surgery repair has been performed since the 1800s.
  • Laparoscopic hernia repair began in the early 1980s. It uses smaller incisions and offers a faster recovery. Use may be limited with ventral, incisional and umbilical hernias. Only small defects can be closed before a mesh is applied. Usually, with this method, a mesh is placed without actually closing the defect.
  • Robotic repair is the latest technology in hernia repair. It allows doctors to close much larger hernias before placing a mesh. This method follows the current recommended best therapy for hernia repair.

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• QShould all hernias be repaired?

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  A Dr. Braulio L. Sabates, MD , Surgery, answered on behalf of Kendall Regional Medical Center - HCA East Florida

  Theoretically speaking, all hernias are like time bombs because you never know when they’re going to incarcerate or strangulate. With that said, there are some hernias that are less than one centimeter, asymptomatic or the patient is so sickly that surgery would be high risk. Those hernia cases should continue to be observed, but you have to take it case by case.

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• QWho is a candidate for laparoscopic hernia surgery?

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  A Dr. Daniel R. Spogen, MD , Family Medicine, answered on behalf of Univ. of Nev. School of Medicine, Family Medicine

  Canidacy for laproscopic hernia surgery depends on a variety of factors including the size of the hernia, previous surgeries in the area, other medical conditions present as well as surgeon comfort and training. Generally for elective (non-emergent) hernia repair a pre-operative appointment and evaluation should be made with a surgeon to discuss the different types of repair and whether laparoscopic repair is possible or indicated.

• QHow are hernias repaired surgically?

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  A Dr. Matthew H. Couch, MD , Surgery, answered on behalf of St. Petersburg General Hospital

  

  There are a number of ways to repair a hernia, according to Matthew Couch, MD, in general surgery at St. Petersburg General Hospital. Learn more about the treatment and repair of hernias in this video.

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• QWhat limitations will I have after a hernia repair?

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  A Dr. Willie V. Melvin, MD , Surgery, answered on behalf of TriStar StoneCrest Medical Center

  Limitations after hernia surgery are necessary to allow for healing and prevent complications. The most common limitations are lifting restrictions. Often this is less than five to 10 pounds to prevent overstressing the hernia repair. In addition, activities that increase the amount of pressure within the abdomen such as straining, bending and coughing should be limited. Talk with your surgeon if you have problems with constipation, difficulty urinating, cough or other concerns. You may also need to discuss with your employer if you can return to work with these activity limitations. Often returning to work with light-duty restrictions is allowed.
• QHow is an early-stage hiatal hernia repaired?

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  A Columbia University Department of Surgery answered

  An early stage hiatal hernia may be repaired by decreasing the size of the enlarged hiatus (the opening in the diaphragm through which the esophagus travels on its way to the stomach). This is accomplished by means of sutures and a prosthetic mesh to reinforce the diaphragm tissue.
• QWhat happens during surgery for a hernia?

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  A Dr. Todd P. Mangione, DO , Surgery, answered on behalf of Baptist Health South Florida

  Hernia surgery is a procedure in which a doctor repairs a hernia, which is a weakness, tear or hole in a body tissue (most often the abdomen) through which another body part may protrude, causing a bulge.
  
  In laparoscopic hernia surgery, your doctor will make a few tiny incisions in the area of your belly button to insert a laparoscope, a thin, lighted tube. Your doctor can then insert long surgical instruments into the laparoscope to reach the area of the hernia, push the wayward body part back in place and seal up the hernia using stitches and/or a patch of surgical mesh.
   
  If you have traditional hernia surgery, your doctor may need to make a bigger incision in your abdomen to reach and repair the hernia, and typically your recovery time may be longer (about six weeks) than with laparoscopic hernia surgery (about two to three weeks).
   

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• QHow long will it take me to recover from hernia surgery?

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  A Dr. Todd P. Mangione, DO , Surgery, answered on behalf of Baptist Health South Florida

  How long it takes you to recover from hernia surgery may depend on the type of surgery you had and whether you experience any complications from the surgery. 
  
  A hernia is a weakness, tear or hole that occurs in a piece of body tissue, most often the abdominal wall, through which another body part (such as the bowel) may protrude and cause a bulge. In hernia surgery, your doctor can push the wayward piece of tissue back into place and seal up the hole or tear using stitches and/or a patch of surgical mesh.
  
  If you have laparoscopic hernia surgery (a procedure in which a doctor inserts surgical instruments through a scope in a tiny incision in the belly button area), typically it may take two to three weeks before you feel completely better.
  If your surgeon repairs your hernia by inserting surgical instruments through a full incision in your abdomen, your recovery may take longer, possibly six weeks or more. Complications, including an infection or a recurrence of the hernia, may also occur after surgery, prolonging your recovery time.

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• QWhat can I expect after having surgery for a gall bladder or hernia?

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  A Dr. Steven Visnaw, DO , Surgery, answered on behalf of Oak Hill Hospital

  

  In this video, Steven Visnaw, DO from Oak Hill Hospital, describes what happens after having surgery for gallbladder or a hernia. Patients stay in a hospital for 1-2 hours after and then start the recovery process over the course of a few weeks.
• QDo I need to have surgery for my hernia?

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  A Dr. Leonardo R. Espinel, MD , Surgery, answered on behalf of StoneSprings Hospital Center

  

  Not all hernias need to be fixed, says Leonardo Espinel, MD from StoneSprings Hospital Center. In this video, the doctor reviews what hernias indicate surgical intervention.

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