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Kang Repair; perspective of a US head and neck surgeon
I am a head and neck surgeon in the US and very active. 2 years ago I began having problems with a right sided indirect inguinal hernia that was bothering me during surfing and exercising. It was this forum that convinced me that a non-mesh repair was a priority. I considered going to the Shouldice Hospital but ultimately decided to go to Korea because I was more comfortable with the Kang approach. In March 2023 I traveled to Seoul with my wife and son. I had a consultation, ultrasound and labs on Thursday and then surgery on Friday. The process was very efficient and I underwent a 20 minute surgery under local anesthesia with some sedation. My incision was 1 inch. I had a nice Korean lunch and went home later that day by Taxi; I stayed a ways away from the Hospital in the Marriott Hotel; my wife wanted a lap pool. I spent about a week in Korea after my surgery and walked about 20 miles and traveled all over the city by subway which was very clean and nice. Pain was mild most of the time but a few times I was too slow to make a light crossing a street and my wife and son left me behind. I was very impressed with Dr. Kang on many levels. I found him to be a man of integrity with a good heart and very committed to doing what he felt was “right”. I enjoyed learning about his progression of surgical philosophy as he observed outcomes of mesh surgery and felt strongly that there had to be a better way that could reduce risk of chronic pain and be equally or more effective at durable repair of the hernia. Many have given details of the hospital experience and I don’t have a lot to add other than as a surgeon I found the hospital to be clean and well run and I had no reservations about the conditions whatsoever.
I am now nearly 2 years out from my surgery and it is as I had hoped; life has moved on with no hernia problems. My scar is barely visible. I am running, lifting weights, surfing without any problems. Without hesitation, I would go back to Korea for hernia surgery. As a side note, I met someone from Toronto while I was there who was getting surgery. I said “wow, you traveled a long way to have mesh free surgery when you have the Shouldice Hospital in your back yard.” He informed me that he had had one side operated on already at the Shouldice Hospital and had come to Korea for the other side. He said that the pain and recovery was easier on the side done with the Kang technique; that was just 1 week post op but I found it an interesting observation that probably few people would be qualified to make.
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1 Reply
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Your perspective as a head and neck surgeon who investigated options “but ultimately decided to go to Korea because I was more comfortable with the Kang approach” could finally answer the question of what exactly is Dr. Kang’s approach? Please share your understanding of what was done to you (that is describe the surgical procedure).
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