Developing hernia after surgery

[hasher98]

A couple (few) months ago I began noticing a "protrusion" at the bottom of my chest incision, right below my ribcage. This thing seemed to poke out a bit whenever I coughed or used my chest very much, but it was soft and didn't hurt, so I didn't pay it a lot of attention. I am about 9 months post surgery and I am still learning what to expect.

Anyway, I went for a cardio doc checkup yesterday and showed the protrusion to him and he informed me that I have developed a hernia. He didn't seem terribly concerned but he is going to have me go back to my surgeon to see what he thinks.

Has anyone else run into this problem? And, just how big an issue is it?

 

[Greg a]

It is operable and can be easily corrected.......I have not had one but I am also on another site "sternectomy support' and it is common there as there is no sternum and the abdominals are slightly efaced doing the flap so thinngs push around and up I do wear the Mcdavid sternum compression shirt and this affords me a little stability in the ribs and some added protection

http://www.mcdavidusa.com/store/item.asp?ITEM_ID=522&DEPARTMENT_ID=728

 

[Navin323i]

I've had a long history of abdominal hernias... not sure if they're related to the fact that I've had an extensive cardiac surgical history, but it's important to make the following notes:

Contrary to the previous post, they are not necessarily easily correctible. When researching hernia repairs you'll find that the rate of recurrence is quite high, given the surgical technique used. If the "traditional" hernia repair method of using sutures to stitch up the herniated hole is used then the odds are that they'll come back. That has happened to me now. Laparoscopic hernia repairs where they insert a mesh "from the inside" to cover the herniated hole seems to work a lot better... I had one of those procedures and that repair is still holding strong. Unfortunately I developed additional hernias at other parts of my abdomen and when they inserted the laparoscopic instruments (trocar), I wound up developing a hernia at the incision site.

Bottom line here is that when you check with your doctor, make sure you know beforehand what technique they are using. If they say they'll suture it up then go elsewhere. If the hernia isn't causing you any pain then I wouldn't worry about it. There are potential dangers with hernias including "strangulation" where your inner organs such as your intestines could get caught in the herniated hole and cause strangulation, but that isn't the case for everyone... in other words having a hernia doesn't mean you'll definitely get strangulation, but it's still important to note that some abdominal hernias can be serious and require surgery. In my case, my hernias caused me pain and discomfort so I opted for the only treatment for hernias... surgery.

Navin

 

[Greg a]

Sorry and thanks for putting the record straight ...as I said I have not had the issue but ie seems that it is fairly common with the sternectomy procedure (a member in Texas described hers a football sized hernia) and I was a LOT ahead of myself in making that statement of being easily corrected....again thanks Navin