News Feed Discussions Mesh Removal Question

  • Mesh Removal Question

    Posted by bmul100 on February 10, 2019 at 1:39 am

    I wanted to say this community is wonderful and I am glad to see a place on the internet for information that is actually beneficial. I am beginning to interview some surgeons to assess removal due to chronic pain and a worsening auto immune disorder that seems like it is making the situation worse. I’d like to know more before I begin talking to them. My situation is apparently complicated because the mesh is both on top of the muscle and underneath? It’s like a plug and patch from what I understand. It was placed openly. My question is does that change the approach of removal? Can the underneath side be removed with an open removal? I’ve seen some conflicting information and my biggest concern with moving forward is the underneath side of the mesh going to be left after removal and does that make it more likely to migrate in the future. I can’t imagine commiting to a partial removal as that would seem to open up the possibility to make things worse. If any of you have some insight I greatly appreciate it.

    drtowfigh replied 5 years, 9 months ago 2 Members · 3 Replies
  • 3 Replies
  • drtowfigh

    Moderator
    February 11, 2019 at 5:08 pm

    That’s correct. Migration is not a consideration or concern in these cases. Each patient’s outcome is unique and not strongly related to a single or dual layer repair.

  • bmul100

    Member
    February 11, 2019 at 3:47 pm

    DR. Towfigh. Thank you for taking the time to reach out and respond to my question. The information is beneficial. Yes I am referring to inguinal hernia mesh. I take it that migration is not a concern then if the underside is left in some cases? Are successful outcomes generally harder to come by when fully removing a two layer mesh openly?

  • drtowfigh

    Moderator
    February 10, 2019 at 3:53 pm

    Thanks for joining our Forum. It’s packed with a lot of great information from patients like you and surgeons like me.

    Mesh removal is best done done by a skilled surgeon wary of all the different options for removal and repair and highly knowledgeable about anatomy. It is also important that your evaluation is complete so that the risks and benefits of removal are very clearly outlined.

    If you are referring to inguinal hernia mesh, an open approach can remove an openly placed mesh that has two layers. Sometimes both layers do not need to removed if the reason for the mesh removal is pain. If you are having autoimmune type problems then all of the mesh must be removed and you should make sure your surgeons is planning on removing all of the mesh.

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