Ventral Hernia

[JMarie65]

Well, I got a nice size Ventral Hernia above and below my incision in the front above mt belly button.
Spent 8 hours in the urgent care getting an ultrasound and cat scan to figure out what was wrong. Scheduling surgery after meeting
with general surgeon next Tuesday. Any other hernia people out there? any advise?

[Christie13]

I had a hernia pre op but not post. Good luck with your surgery.

[Kindle]

No hernia after VSG, but my asshat US surgeon left me with an insicional hernia right above my belly button after removing my gallbladder. I knew what it was within a week after surgery cause I could stick my whole finger into it. Took me a month to convince him it was a hernia because God forbid he would have made a mistake. (Especially after he bad mouthed my Mexico surgeon who performed a flawless surgery). But I dont feel like spending another $6000 deductible to get it fixed so I just keep stuffing my insides back in the hole when they pop through. Been doing that for almost 1 1/2 years.

[Dewdrop]

Well, I got a nice size Ventral Hernia above and below my incision in the front above mt belly button.
Spent 8 hours in the urgent care getting an ultrasound and cat scan to figure out what was wrong. Scheduling surgery after meeting
with general surgeon next Tuesday. Any other hernia people out there? any advise?

Are you saying that during your sleeve surgery the doctor gave you two hernias? Why the ultra sound and cat scan? Is it because they didn't know it was hernias? Are they painful? Is this basically from the doctor moving things around and not putting them back properly? I have a hiatal hernia which is the stomach going through the diaphragm. I guess that's the only kind of hernia I understand. Is it your muscle poking through where it shouldn't, or intestine, or something?

[Kindle]

Are you saying that during your sleeve surgery the doctor gave you two hernias? Why the ultra sound and cat scan? Is it because they didn't know it was hernias? Are they painful? Is this basically from the doctor moving things around and not putting them back properly? I have a hiatal hernia which is the stomach going through the diaphragm. I guess that's the only kind of hernia I understand. Is it your muscle poking through where it shouldn't, or intestine, or something?

A hernia is basically where a body part protrudes through a hole in the wall of the body cavity that is supposed to contain it. In the case of a hiatal hernia, the hole where the esophagus travels through the diaphragm becomes too big, allowing the stomach to bulge up into the thoracic (chest) cavity, where your lungs and heart reside. Probably the most common hernia...especially in men...is an inguinal hernia where intestines or fat or whatever protrude through the inguinal canal in the groin area. Another common one is an umbilical hernia where the hole in your abdominal wall where your umbilical cord came through doesn't close completely and you're left with a hole at your belly button. Trauma can also cause hernias. We see diaphramatic hernias in dogs and cats hit by cars. Their diaphragm tears and their intestines push up into their chest cavity, restricting the lung's ability to expand and they can die quickly from suffocation if it's not repaired.

In my and the OP's cases, the incisions that were made through our abdominal muscles for surgery did not heal and close completely, leaving holes that our intestines or body fat or whatever can push through. For me it's not painful, just an ugly bulge right above my belly button. It's about the size of my index finger, and like I said, I just keep poking it back in. The danger with these types of hernias is if something major (like a loop of intestine) gets pushed through and you can't get it back in, that tissue can strangulate and die, leaving you with necrosis and infection.

[Dewdrop]

Thank you for such a detailed response Kindle. Sounds like this is hard to determine whether it's the doctors fault, or your body just not healing correctly. I guess this is yet another worry to add to my list! : )

[Kindle]

Thank you for such a detailed response Kindle. Sounds like this is hard to determine whether it's the doctors fault, or your body just not healing correctly. I guess this is yet another worry to add to my list! : )

In my case, the hernia was evident within days postop, which tells me the surgeon didn't close it properly (didn't place the suture securely or a knot came undone, etc.). It occurred too quickly to be blamed on not healing properly. Between my VSG and cholecystectomy I had 9 other insicions through my abdominal muscles that healed perfectly.

As for fixing it, the surgeon told me he would comp his fee, but he had no control over what the anesthesiologist and hospital would charge. I plan on just waiting it out for whenever I am under anesthesia for something else or at least a year where I've already met my deductible. Or maybe see if Dr. Ortiz, who did my VSG in Tijuana, would be willing to fix it if I ever get down there for a vacation or something.

[Dewdrop]

Oh, ok. I was curious about that. Thanks, it's all very interesting and good know!