Abdominal Hernia Repair
If you are experiencing pain or discomfort in the navel or groin area, especially when you cough, pick up a heavy object, or stand for too long, it could be a hernia.
The Lincoln Surgical team wants to ensure our patients have the information they need when it comes to your condition and treatment options, so we've put together some helpful facts on hernias and the procedures we can use to treat them.
What is a hernia?
Hernias come in a variety of locations in the body. The most common ones we see are abdominal wall hernias. They can happen through normal weak spots in the abdominal wall in the inguinal region, groin, or around the belly button. Commonly, they happen after someone has had open surgery. A patient has been repaired at the muscular level, but that repair has come apart over the years.
Our team repairs
698hernias a year.
What causes a hernia?
When people cough, strain at the stool, sneeze, twist, or lift, that is called valsalva. Whenever someone increases that pressure, things tend to want to pop through those defects. Many times they pop in and out, which is an aggravating, ongoing problem that someone might not seek medical attention for, but it can get stuck. If the intestine or the omental fat, which is a fatty apron in the abdomen, pokes through that hole and isn't relieved back through, you can have ongoing symptoms. It becomes quite painful and a surgical emergency if that happens.
What are the treatment options for hernias?
The approach to repairing hernias depends on the type of hernia, how big it is, where it's located, and what previous surgeries the patient has had. We may perform an open or a minimally invasive repair, whether laparoscopic or robotic assisted. We can tailor a repair for what's going to be best for the patient.
Types of hernias
How would a patient know if they have a hernia?
Typically a patient will present with either pain or a bulge at the site, especially when they're lifting or doing something strenuous. The vast majority of these can be diagnosed by a clinical exam alone. Once diagnosed, if you're a relatively healthy person, we usually recommend repair.
Talk about the types of hernia repairs.
Hernia repairs are patching a hole, and there are different ways to do it. We can do it laparoscopically with small incisions and using a camera, or we can do it the traditional way right at the hernia site itself. The vast majority of these hernia repairs are outpatient surgeries, and they typically are one-hour surgeries or less.