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SILS is single incision surgery. The thought is that with one (larger) incision you can do a similar operation as you would with 3 (smaller) incisions.

It’s an interesting technique. It has been used for gallbladder surgery, kidney surgery, prostate surgery. All of these have a specimens to be removed which benefit from the larger incision.

Some are using the SILS for hernia surgery. It is not yet FDA approved for the Intuitive robotic platform, but that’s ok. Doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

With hernia surgery, there is no specimen to be removed, so there is no advantage to the larger incision. The main advantage of SILS in these situations is it may allow for less visible scarring in some situations.

As with any incision, the larger the incision the higher the risk of incisional hernia. Whether you actually get a hernia is related to your risk factors and the technique of the surgeon. Exercise does not increase that risk; it may even be protective.

(And thanks for wondering about me… I’ve been sick and no voice since before Thanksgiving. Finally starting to feel normal-ish).

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Sam’s answer is very accurate.

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Thanks. We are continuing to make improvements. The site has certain options that can be turned on and off. Plus our team is meeting regularly to make sure we catch glitches, etc of this new forum.

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The Shouldice clinic does not offer hernia repairs if there is no visible bulge. However, the Shouldice repair technique can be applied to occult inguinal hernias.

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The majority of the 7 million hwrnia repaired worldwide per year.

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Spammers gonna spam. We take care of them.

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Speak to your surgeon to find out what are your options for findings of inguinal hernia.

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Mesh repair was introduced in late 1970s and became popular in 1980s and 1990s.

So, yes.

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Testicle loss from first hernia repair is rare, unless the hernia is ginormous.

Repeat hernia surgery, especially from the front/open/anterior approach may disrupt blood flow to the testicle, resulting in poor blood flow or no blood flow. This means the testicle can shrink. In even more rare situates, the testicle may need to be removed.

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Risk of testicle loss goes up the more the blood flow to the testicle is affected. This is more likely if multiple anterior (open) approaches are made in the same groin area.

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Thank you for your contribution.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by  drtowfigh.

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Ice / cold therapy is a fantastic anti-inflammatory. Hernia pain is inflammatory in nature. Ice packs work great for direct therapy.

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We’ve discussed this issue at length in past posts. Consider reviewing those answers.

If you look at most studies, laparoscopic repair with mesh has the lowest chronic pain rate, especially among women.

However, as you pointed out, that statement may not represent the right answer for an individual patient.

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I don’t personally know anyone in GA that does tissue repairs.

Dr Maggie Diller is great at Emory.

You can also search for Georgia on this forum and see what comes up

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Phasix is not made from E. coli, it’s made by E. coli.

Of course testing has been done on this synthetic material to assure complete sterility.

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Femoral hernia can be the causes. That said, the quality of hernia ultrasounds is not always great. I have seen ultrasounds that erroneously call an inguinal hernia a femoral hernia, and vice versa. MRI can help clear that up. It will also help identify an incisional hernia (uncommon with C-sections) and other hernias nearby.

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The whack-a-mole efforts are becoming extremely tiring.

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Obviously, follow your surgeon’s lead as it is too early to worry yet about long term problems. But, since you are better with ibuprofen, then you have inflammatory pain. So, that should reduce over time in most patients.

Sometimes a binder helps take pressure off the area, in the short term. Massaging the area can also help reduce scarring and improve blood flow to the area in the short term.

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Thanks for the feedbacks. Please keep them coming. I’m optimistic we can improve this site to optimize the discussions.

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Done.