DO YOU NEED INGUINAL HERNIA SURGERY?
If you need quality, affordable inguinal hernia surgery, you’ve come to the right place!
Even though our hernia surgery center is located in Maryland, patients come to us from across the country to save thousands of dollars on inguinal hernia surgery. Even with the cost of airfare, our prices are often more affordable than any hernia surgery center you’ll find in your hometown! And it’s not only affordable hernia surgery, it’s excellent care.
WHAT ARE INGUINAL HERNIAS?
All inguinal hernias that are significant cause a bulge that can be felt. When the hernia is small, it will often disappear when the patient lies in bed. As the hernia enlarges, it becomes more difficult to “reduce.” When it cannot be reduced, it is called an “incarcerated” inguinal hernia. If intestine gets stuck in a hernia, the portion that is trapped may lose its blood supply and become injured due to a lack of blood supply. This is called a “strangulated” inguinal hernia. These are very painful and are usually accompanied by vomiting. Fortunately, these are very, very, rare.
HOW IS SURGERY PERFORMED?
Inguinal hernias occur in the groin region of both men and women, though men are 25 times more likely to get them. Approximately 5% of all males develop a hernia once in their lifetime. Inguinal hernias can occur in infants and children—occurring in about 1-5% of this age group. Premature infants are at increased risk for inguinal hernia, with a much higher incidence in males.
WHY DO INGUINAL HERNIAS OCCUR?
There are two types of inguinal hernias – indirect and direct. An indirect inguinal hernia results from a congenital hole (one that is present at birth) in the abdominal wall through which the blood supply to the testicle passes. Direct inguinal hernias are seen exclusively in adults and consists of a hole which develops in a different area of the muscles of the groin. All hernias in children are indirect, and many adults have small indirect hernias that are small enough that they cannot be felt. As we age, these small holes in the muscle can stretch out and become large enough that fat and intestine can go through them and form a painful bulge.
HOW CAN INGUINAL HERNIAS BE REPAIRED?
For most of surgical history, inguinal hernias were repaired by operations in which the hernia surgeon used internal stitches to close the hole in the muscle. There were a number of techniques that surgeons used. Many patients had good results, but a significant number of patients would develop a recurrence (another hernia in the same area). These operations were quite painful, and surgeons typically advised patients to refrain from physical activity for four to six weeks. Nowadays, most surgeons repair adult hernias with mesh. Advantages of the mesh inguinal surgery repair method include very low recurrence rate(less than 1%), significantly less pain and no restrictions after the surgery.
For more information on inguinal hernias and to find out if you need inguinal hernia surgery, you can contact us by phone or the online form.
