Adult Umbilical Hernia Article

Surgical Repair of Hernias

The use of surgery to repair hernias is a very common one. In the United States alone, each year there are well over 600,000 surgical procedures done to repair hernias. A hernia represents a weakness in the walls of the muscles of the abdomen. This usually results in a protrusion of the tissue through an opening in the abdomen's outer wall. These can develop in any part of a person's abdominal wall. However, they will usually occur in areas that tend to be weak. These include, inguinal hernias, or hernias of the groin area, umbilical hernias, hiatal hernias and any incisions from past surgeries. Although hernias can cause much pain and discomfort, they usually do not pose any serious long-term threat.

Hernias may be congenital, that is, present from birth, or they may be caused by undue strain on the abdominal muscles. They usually do not go away on their own. They must be surgically repaired. Hernia repairs are done on an elective basis. However, when a hernia becomes strangulated then emergency surgery is required.

Herniorrhaphy is the term used for surgical repair of a hernia. The hole in the abdominal wall is repaired when the surgeon sews the surrounding muscle together or when he places a patch("mesh") on top of the defect. Many surgery repairs are now done laparoscopically. Very small incisions are made by the surgeon to allow spcialized instruments and an endoscope to pass through. This allows the surgeon to view the abdominal area without having to open the patient up. This reults in not only less recovery time but less pain. Having the surgery done laparoscopically is clearly not an option for each and every patient.

Becoming increasingly popular is the use of surgical mesh for the repair of hernias. Most of the messes that are now on the market are composed of synthetic materials. One drawback to using mesh is that sometimes the body can react adversely to it since the body recognizes this as a foreign object. Sometimes a surgeon prefers to use a mesh that is composed of biomaterials. These are gradually resorbed by one's body over a period of time. These materials only offer temporary repair of the hernia, and sometimes another surgical repair will be necessary.

Human tissue is another alternative to the synthetic and absorbable mesh. There are some companies that market human dermis to be used for soft tissue repair. This material is used in the same way as the other meshes are. However, there have been cases of serious infection and death as a result of implanting human cadaveric tissue in surgical procedures.

Only doctors can provide the proper diagosis and treatment for henias. However, the patient does have the right to take part in the decision making because it will affect their quality of life. When the patient is better informed about the options available, then a better treatment plan can be made.