Your hernia might have started off as a nuisance, but now it’s become downright uncomfortable. It’s time for us to repair the problem.
Around the world, doctors perform more than 20 million hernia repairs each year, including more than 1 million in the United States, making it one of the more common surgeries.
If you’re poised to join these numbers, you’re in good hands with the skilled team of general surgeons at Rockwall Surgical Specialists. This month, we cover some smart strategies when it comes to easing your recovery from hernia surgery.
Before we dive into best practices for your recovery after a hernia repair, let’s set the scene a little with some background on hernia repairs.
A hernia is a matter of displacement — an organ pushes through a weak spot in the muscles or tissues that are supposed to contain it. There are many types of hernias, but inguinal hernias are responsible for about 80% of hernia repairs performed annually in the US.
Whether we’re repairing an inguinal hernia or another type, such as a femoral, hiatal, or umbilical, we typically rely on laparoscopic technology. This minimally invasive approach to hernia repairs often means a shorter recovery time for you, but there’s still some healing that you need to navigate.
With laparoscopy, we only need to make small incisions as we rely on a camera and specialized tools to aid us in your hernia repair. This not only means that you have less collateral tissue damage, but it also means that we can often perform hernia repairs on an outpatient basis so you can go home the same day.
While hernia repair surgeries have come a long way, you can still take steps to make sure your recovery goes as smoothly as possible. Here are our top tips:
Even if you’re heading home the same day, you still need to take it easy for a few days. We recommend that you plan in advance — take a few days off of work, and make sure you’ve cleared your schedule for some downtime.
While we certainly don’t want you hitting the gym the day after a hernia repair, we do want you to move around a little bit and go for walks. Gone are the days when doctors recommended prolonged bed rest after surgery — we now know that moving around is better as it gets your healing resources circulating and helps prevent issues with constipation and blood clots.
Before we send you home, we supply you with comprehensive aftercare instructions, and it’s important to follow these. From incision care, to when you can take a bath, to straining and lifting, we outline some important points about recovering from your hernia surgery.
You should expect some discomfort around the surgical site, but it shouldn’t be anything major — you should be able to address any post-operative pain with over-the-counter medications. And this discomfort should only last a few days.
If you’re experiencing any pain that’s not subsiding, or if it’s getting worse, let us know. As well, if you see any redness or tenderness start to develop around the small incisions, this is something you should alert us to.
In fact, we want you to err on the side of caution and let us know about any changes or concerns you might have during your recovery.
If you have more questions about how to prepare for your hernia surgery and how to ease your recovery, we’re just a phone call or click away. You can call 972-412-7700 or connect with us online to schedule an appointment at one of our offices in Rockwall, Rowlett, Greenville, Terrell, or Forney, Texas.
