Good intentions
Forum Replies Created
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Two inches is huge. I don’t think that’s correct. Good luck.
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It’s like removing the patch over a hole from a pair of jeans. The original hole is the same size as it was at the beginning of the repair. Actually, it’s usually smaller, or the tissue weakness is lessened, due to shrinkage and stiffening from collagen deposition.
That’s the premise behind the absorbable meshes. The body’s response to the foreign body causes the defect to stiffen and shrink, then the foreign body, the mesh, gets absorbed. A good idea in concept but apparently not so good in practice.
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What type of hernia? What type of physical activity do you do? Any sports?
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Is that an old image? It doesn’t seem to exist on the ACHQC web site today. And the Contact person today is Nicole, not Aileen.
Is it from one of the social media sites? If you go to the ACHQC main web site as it says to do there is no information anywhere about Seeking Volunteers for that Committee. The Committee seems to exist, but the call for volunteers does not.
I do see John Parker on the committee member list. But there is a person who frequents the forum with many different aliases, trying to create chaos. He has impersonated actual forum members in the past. No way to be sure if you are the real one. Good luck, if it really is you. Please supply a direct link to the ACHQC page that describes the mission and the modus operandi of the committee. How does the committee operate to attempt to achieve its mission? A typical meeting agenda would be helpful. What is expected of the patient volunteers?
“Patient Engagement & Advocacy Committee
Mission: Identify key areas to improve patient outcomes and increase patient education”
https://achqc.org/faqs/committees
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Where did you hear it?
Your comments seem familiar. Hard to place.
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Strange story. Where did he have the mesh implant surgery? Why does he need it removed? Why would he trust someone who has not had hernia repair yet, and is still asking the old questions about Kang verus Shouldice? How will a laborer on Mexico level wages afford surgery in the US?
Very odd. Entertaining though.
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Redundant colon. That’s a new one. Good luck.
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The suspenders work so well that I have been wearing them every day when I go out. I also ordered a second set.
I had another thought – compression shorts or bike shorts.
It’s surprising how pants have developed and become such an important part of our lives. Now whenever I see someone in public in yoga pants or sweats I wonder if they have or have had a hernia. The waist band of today’s typical pants cuts right across the inguinal canal.
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And here.
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Like here.
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Wellington, Dr. Towfigh has already replied to Ken’s questions. He asks the same questions and makes the same comments over and over.
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Be careful with DM’s Wellington. Don’t share any phone numbers or private information. You don’t know who you’re really communicating with. Thanks for posting your updates. Good luck.
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You’re asking the same questions you’ve asked in the past Ken.
How is Javier doing? Did he choose a mesh removal surgeon yet?
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Which member? I can’t recall any member reporting a recurrence after playing tennis.
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I got a set of Dickies suspenders (link below) delivered yesterday morning and went for a couple of long walks with the suspenders and the band, then another walk in the evening with just the suspenders. Spent today using just the suspenders.
They really make a difference. The infinitely adjustable flat fabric belt with the buckle set to the side worked well. But having no belt at all is much better. I also found that with no belt the pants I’ve been wearing don’t press on my lower abdomen at the waist line. So the reason for the band is gone.
I’ve been wearing them under my shirt as a test to see if I could wear them discreetly. It works. It’s a little bit awkward using the toilet in sit-down mode since you have to remove your shirt, but it’s worth the extra effort.
So, all three of these concepts work to a degree. Still hoping that a good long run of no irritation will allow the inflammation around the remaining piece of mesh to settle down so that it can shrink and get fully encapsulated.
Overall though, I am way better than I was even just last year. So, if you’re struggling, just keep trying new things. Good luck.
I’ve been using them on Levi 550’s.
https://www.dickies.com/belts-suspenders/work-suspenders/DI5100BK+AL.html
dickies.com
Work Suspenders | Dickies - Dickies US
This polyester & elastomer work suspender from Dickies comes in 32mm with an X back. Features the classic Dickies leather embossed patch. Order today!
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I’ve been wearing the supporter band I described in the first post and it really does help. It protects the whole area across the lower abdomen, right across the areas of the direct hernias. The inguinal canal location. It spreads the load and minmizes external irritation.
It’s really just a modifed truss as far as I can tell. But the ones I bought came two to a pack for just $15. A cheap test for anyone considering a truss.
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Here is more about the J&J settlement mentioned above. Even though J&J removed Physiomesh from the market in 2016 the suits and settlement actions continued.
It will be interesting to see how these payments continue in the future as or if new suits are filed. Once precedent is set, then each new suit has something to refer to determine an appropriate settlement. All of those seeds planted for other mesh types, and the odds are known for many. I wonder if investors are calculating the risk. Or will the public pay the settlement costs through higher insurance rates.
Also interesting that registry data was used to show how bad Physiomesh was. It might explain the seeming resistance to registries, but it also shows their value to the public. Registry data should be made public and easily searchable.
Physiomesh is meant for ventral hernias, but the same issues apply to inguinal hernia mesh. Ethicon has a broad portfolio of meshes designed by the same people that designed and tested Physiomesh.
“…
Ethicon withdrew the products after an analysis of two independent hernia registries linked laparoscopic ventral hernia repair using Physiomesh to a higher average rate of recurrence and reoperation than a set of comparator meshes.
…”
medtechdive.com
J&J hernia mesh settlement prompts judge to dismiss more than 200 cases
The company and claimants in Georgia filed to dismiss cases related to Ethicon’s Physiomesh in late November.
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Professional athletes generally avoid mesh. That is a reality.
Not really clear who you are, you sound familiar, but for anybody that comes across this thread – just read the posts from the beginning of the forum. Nothing has changed. Nothing has improved. You might think that “they must have solved these problems” but they have not. It’s all the same, just more of it. More laparoscopic methods and more mesh being used. I am not exaggerating. The same stories, the same inconclusive research studies. It is pretty amazing how consistent things have been. The paper I linked above is from 2023. Inconclusive, but the question about fixation is decades old.
Robotic surgery is just automated/remote TAPP surgery. General anesthesia with a transabdominal approach to the posterior wall. The same meshes and fixation methods are used. The odds of the results will be the same as a TAPP procedure.
I really do wish I could be more positive and deliver the good news that the forum was intended to deliver. But things have stayed the same over the years. The means to cause improvement seem to be developing but the pace of progress is glacial.
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It’s not spam Cursed. Many surgeons assume that the FDA will save them from using poor medical devices. They think that if the device is “FDA-approved” that it will be good for the patient. The evidence though, shows that the FDA is at this point in time essentially a “rubber stamp” organization, through the 510(k) process. They don’t actually do any substantial investigating, even though their own database is full of reports of harm from a variety of mesh products. They depend on the various industries to “self-police”. It’s why the surgeons that know about this are calling for registries and device tracking. It’s one of the reasons for organizations like the ACHQC. The government agencies are failing us, both surgeons and patients. Surgeons, and patients, will have to identify and call out these bad products so that they can be avoided.
The FDA only seems to get involved if very serious harm occurs. Death, or seriously debilitating effects. Mild daily suffering is not enough.
Sorry that I did not respond to your last message. Please create a Discussion on the main forum so that other people can help answer your questions. Good luck.
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“No fixation” is also associated with chronic pain. Apparently, there is no definitive evidence supporting either. Publication linked below. People should also be aware of the many different types of “fixation”. Sutures, absorbable tacks, titanium tacks, staples, glues, etc. Even the “no fixation” meshes, like Progrip, actually use a sort of fixation, it’s just already attached to the mesh.
The surgeon who implanted the mesh in me was very proud of his creation of the “perfect space”, so the mesh would not move. He described it to the friend-surgeon that recommended him. The mesh was out of place, it had dropped-migrated downward, and was folded on the direct hernia side, when it was removed three years later. The perfect space didn’t work.
Sorry Dr. Towfigh, but these are just the real-world things that happened to me. I had all of the boxes checked for a perfect result, the expereinced surgeon, the lightweight mesh, the TEP procedure, no fixation, etc. It wasn’t even close.
Also note how the authors of the paper below used “No evidence for fiaxtion” in the title but the actual work shows no evidence for either. I don’t think that they are actually trained in the scientific method. Their biases are evident. I don’t understand how it happens but it’s right there in the work they published. IT’s very disconcerting. The title should clearly state the matter is undecided.
<b data-test=”article-title” data-article-title=””>No evidence for fixation of mesh in laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) inguinal hernia repair: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
<b data-test=”article-title” data-article-title=””>
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00464-023-10237-0
link.springer.com
Objective To investigate the differences in hernia recurrence and chronic postoperative inguinal pain (CPIP) in randomized, controlled trials comparing fixation and non-fixation of the mesh in laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) inguinal hernia repair. Methods A multi-database systematic search was conducted … Continue reading