-
Pregnant & Possible Hernia? What to Do
Hi [USER=”935″]drtowfigh[/USER] !
I have had mild pain on what I thought was my R ovary for the past 1.5 years, main symptom is really just a mild to strong discomfort and feeling like there is a golf ball stuck in there. Long story short, multiple ultrasounds through that time showed healthy ovaries and I am now 19 weeks pregnant. The pain is more severe now (everything feels pretty tight on space anyways) and when I’m constipated. I’ve been suffering from constipation for about 4 years now. I’ve been persistent in sharing the pain with my OB/GYN and she now believes I could have a hernia. Everything I’m finding on hernias in women seems to line up with this hypothesis, especially since my aunt had one 5 years ago and I certainly have strained aplenty during BMs.
My main question is: Do I bother spending the time and money to visit a hernia specialist NOW or wait until after baby? My OB is confident there is really not much a specialist will do until after I give birth.
I live in CO and saw your other posts where you are unable to personally refer someone here, but I would be willing to travel to have treatment done right the first time. If that’s changed, please let me know!
Thank you so very much for taking the time to read and help!
-
1 Reply
-
Congratulations on the pregnancy.
Hernias can occur during pregnancy. We only operate if there is debilitating pain requiring narcotics (usually ice and naproxen/ibuprofen is adequate), or if there are signs of ischemia (i.e., blood flow being blocked to the area).
Constipation must be treated aggressively. There are a lot of safe over the counter options. Constipation with straining will make hernia symptoms worse.
In pregnancy, bulging in the area can also be due to a varices (bulging veins) or canal of Nuck cyst (fluid collection), so an ultrasound of the hernia is necessary for this.
Log in to reply.