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Groin numbness
So I had bilateral inguinal hernia surgery done keyhole and am 10 days post op. The left side of my groin feels ok but the right side has had numbness since i got home from hospital. Is this normal and something that will get better with time or could it be permanent. I’m not in much pain but the numbness is freaking me out a little. Any info would be greatly appreciated
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18 Replies
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Most wake up with bilateral mesh cause just going Into that area there are different theories. As oh I saw something on the other side while going in, they get a few more bucks doing both sides and they have there own backs by citing well maybe I saw a weakness there! While in need of anything hernia wise don’t go to a general surgeon look up hernia specialist. Give yourself time to heal and nerves can progress to heal up but it’s month after month. Get your op report to see what was done. Nerves can get damaged by surgery, mesh encasing them etc. Op report will tell you everything if they are honest as they might have cut a nerve, used tacks hit a nerve, our nerves and spermatic cords are caught with this stuff. Give it time 3 months see where your at then 6 etc. See what mesh was placed and your op report will tell you that.
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Repairing an asymptomatic hernia is a topic of debate in the hernia repair world. Because of what you are experiencing.
Ride it out and see where you end up. Your body will adapt, it’s really just a question of how and how much.
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One thing that’s never studied for some reason is what percentage of patients feel 100% normal after inguinal hernia surgery. By this I mean a groin that feels completely normal as though nothing ever happened. No pain, numbness, burning, discomfort, foreign body sensations, etc. None of this at all, not even occasionally.
A Canadian mesh surgeon posted on her blog that “a groin which has been operated on for hernia will never feel the same as before the hernia repair”. I think she meant that it will not feel like a normal unoperated groin. This seems a bit extreme. I have talked to a couple of people who claim that their groin feels 100% normal after Shouldice repair, but it would be nice to have some studies looking into that with different procedures. Somehow, this question never seems to be asked. Patients with minor symptoms are effectively bundled with patients with zero symptoms.
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Get your operative report forsure and sometimes the nerves will continue to heal over time but sometimes it can take months for them to calm. But what you are feeling is definitely nerve damage of the iliolinguinal or genital branch of the genitofemoral nerve.
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Nerves that are cut in hernia repair can sometimes but rarely ever grow back, once cut they are buried away from the scarfield and buried in virgin tissue. The are cut if the nerve is damaged or encased in the mesh from scar tissue and not meant to grow back hence why they are buried away from the scarfield and into virgin tissue away.
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So it’s now day 17 post op and I feel pretty much the same. Numb on the right side near the crease of thigh a few inches down. Left side of groin feels fine atm. Some slight pain every now and then but the right side doesn’t seem to be getting better at all. Should i just continue to wait it out or contact my surgeon? Can he even d anything?
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Peripheral nerves do grow back. So, the point at which they are cut is important, and how the terminal ends are handled. As Dr. Bendavid has suggested, the environment in to which they regenerate might influence the feeling of pain.
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2019.00337/full
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Get your op reports to see if any nerves were cut. Nerves are injured very often after mesh is place and numbness and burning are a sign of nerve damage. It can calm down after time but some times not. Also when nerves are cut they do not grow back. Best wishes!
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Numbness after surgery is not uncommon. It’s called hypoesthesia. Some surgeons cut nerves as a part of their procedure, to try to prevent future pain. And, sometimes nerves are damaged during the procedure. It can happen during laparoscopy (aka “keyhole surgery”). They do repair themselves though and grow back if cut.
You should get your medical records. They might have notes about what happened during your surgery. Talking to your surgeon would be a good idea, although you should be going in soon for the post-surgery follow-up. Good luck.
If you have time maybe you could describe your hernia and the repair surgery. Was it robotic? Do you know the type of mesh? Who performed the procedure?
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But this was done laproscopically. Incisions were in the abdomen. Could the mesh be causing the numbness? Thanks
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Numbness after open surgery is completely normal initially and usually resolves as the swelling resolves. You should also check with your surgeon to see if any nerves were cut.
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The thing is I had bilateral surgery and before the surgery I only felt discomfort on the left side. I didnt even know I had one on the right until a dynamic ultrasound was done. Now the left feels fairly normal and the right side is where I’m feeling numbness and hypersensitivity as well as general discomfort. If I didn’t have something to base it off I would think differently
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Makes sense. I went back to work last week. I’m trying my best to not dwell on it. I stand and walk around a lot at work so I think that should help. Thanks again for the input
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Your whole situation seems very normal. The Progrip mesh has an absorbable component so there will be more change over time. Many people feel like they can feel the mesh inside after surgery.
I hate to say it but there is nothing that is commonly done for issues like yours. Most imaging methods cannot “see” the mesh or the people looking at the images don’t know what they’re looking at so there is no way to tell if the mesh has folded or moved.
Your surgeon has already told you to wait at least six weeks and you’re only four weeks out. You don’t have pain, just numbness and some internal irritation. It is almost certain that at your next meeting the surgeon will tell you to wait longer and see how things resolve. The standard protocol today if patients complain of pain is to refer them to pain management. There is no surgical procedure for re-adjusting the mesh if you feel like it is folded or has moved.
Ultimately it will be up to you to decide whether or not to persist in trying to make things better. Pain can be managed with pharmaceuticals but numbness just requires time and waiting for the body to respond.
But, it is still very early. At four weeks you should be okay with walking and light exercise. I found that sometimes more activity was better than rest to make things feel better. If you are just resting and taking medication you might think about getting out and about more and seeing what happens. Keeping a log of activities and their effects can help also, as you try to get back to normal.
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So I did end up getting the surgery report. Pro Grip mesh was used. Approx 10x15cm. The hernia themselves were 4x5mm. Laproscopic with robotic assist DaVinci Xi. Doesn’t seem like there were any complications. I still feel the exact same numbness and sensitivity and it feels like something is pinching me in my groin. Testicles still are sore most of the time. I’ve used ice everyday and motrin just about everyday. Its been nearly 4 weeks. Is it possible the mesh folded up during the surgery? The left side feels fine at this point. Maybe occasional twinge but nothing consistent at all. I do have another follow up with the surgeon March 8th. I can def feel the right side when i walk. Could it be the mesh rubbing against nerves? I don’t thing any nerves were cut during the procedure per the report. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
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I saw my surgeon on 2/8 and mentioned to him the numbness. He asked me if it was getting better and I said no. He didn’t really seem to make a big deal of it and I called the office again last Friday and they said it could take 6 weeks. I would think I would see a noticeable difference in a week’s time. I just find it odd that the left side feels ok. I’ve been icing it everyday and using a heating pad at times. A general surgeon near where I live did the surgery. He was refereed by my pcp. I believe it was done robotically. 3 small incisions in abdomen. As for the hernias they were small but the left one was bothering me. When they did an ultrasound they saw 1 on both sides so we decided to fix both in one swoop. I wasn’t aware that I had one on the right side and now that’s the side that is bothering me.
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Thanks for the response. I know it’s still early in the process and will give myself ample time to continue to heal. In the meantime I’m gonna contact my surgeons office Monday and get a copy of the surgery report. The report would indicate if any nerves were cut or is it possible the surgeon has no idea? Again appreciate the responses.
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Your path to surgery and where you’re at now is very common, including going in for a single hernia and getting both sides repaired instead. Three entry points is probably a typical laparoscopy, not robotic. All that you can do is wait and hope. You have a good chance of being fine. Numbness is bothersome but is much much better than pain. Take it easy, but stay active. The mesh is still being surrounded by new tissue that your body is creating.
Not to make you worried but if there was nerve damage during surgery there is nothing that a surgeon can do to fix it. Many of us that have had surgery have had odd nerve sensations and numbness. I have. But your body will continue to try to get back to where it was.
Good luck. Don’t worry too much about it. What’s done is done.
You really should get your surgery records if you want to understand more. All you have to do is call and ask. They are yours.
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