Hernia Repair Surgery
Surgery is typically used to treat hernias. Open hernia repair, laparoscopic hernia repair, and robotic hernia repair are the three basic methods of hernia surgery.
What is open surgery for hernia repair?
In an open hernia repair, a cut or incision is made in the groyne. The bulging intestine is located within the hernia “sac.” In order to strengthen the abdominal wall, the surgeon next pulls the hernia back into the abdomen and inserts stitches or synthetic mesh. After surgery, most patients can return home within a few hours and are usually in good health within a few days. Exercise and strenuous activities are prohibited for four to six weeks following surgery.
Laparoscopic Hernia Surgery
- A laparoscope, a narrow, telescope-like equipment, is used in laparoscopic (minimally invasive) hernia repair. It is inserted through a tiny incision at the umbilicus (belly button). Before the surgery, you will undergo a general health assessment that includes a history, physical exam (and potentially lab testing), and an electrocardiogram because this treatment is typically done under general anaesthesia (EKG).
- During this procedure, you won’t experience any pain. An “inside view” of your body is shown on television screens in the operating room through a laparoscope that is attached to a tiny video camera.
- A non-harmful gas (carbon dioxide) is used to expand the abdomen, which makes room for your doctor to see your inside organs. To reveal the abdominal wall’s frailty, the peritoneum, which lines the inside of the abdomen, is sliced. To cover the holes in the abdominal wall and fortify the tissue, mesh is inserted from the inside.
- The small abdominal wounds are stitched or covered with surgical tape after the surgery is finished. The incisions become hardly invisible after a few months.
- Laparoscopic hernia surgery has advantages such as minimal scars, reduced pain following surgery, a quicker return to work, and a quicker recovery (days instead of weeks).
Robotic Hernia repair surgery
- Similar to laparoscopic surgery, robotic hernia repair utilises a laparoscope and is carried out in the same way (small incisions, a tiny camera, inflation of the abdomen, projecting the inside of the abdomen onto television screens).
- Robotic surgery varies from laparoscopic surgery as the surgeon controls the surgical instruments from a console while seated in the operating room. Robotic surgery is currently also utilised to repair the abdominal wall, in addition to treating some smaller hernias or weak spots.
- One of the most significant distinctions between robotic surgery and laparoscopic surgery is that the latter uses a robot to produce superior three-dimensional images of the abdomen (vs. the two-dimensional images of laparoscopic surgery). Additionally, with the use of robotic surgery, the surgeon may quickly sew tissue and meshes inside the abdomen.
- Other advantages of robotic hernia surgery include the absence of a single, major incision scar and potential for reduced postoperative pain when compared to open surgery.
