Hello,

I was told about a month ago I had an umbilical hernia. This is the reason I decided to have VSG to do both at the same time. I read a lot of people say they had a hiatial hernia but I don't see umbilical ?? Is it not done ?? My first consultation is July 5th.

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A hiatal hernia is basically an enlargement of the hole in your diaphragm where your esophagus passes through it. When the hole is too big, the stomach bulges through it into the chest cavity. It's not uncommon in overweight people and can be a cause of reflux and chest pain. it obviously needs to be repaired during VSG or the sleeve can't be shaped correctly. And the sleeve will just protrude back up through the hole if it's not repaired.

An umbilical hernia is a hole in your body wall at your belly button (where your umbilical cord used to attach). Anything could potential pop through and look like a bulge under your skin. It's usually just internal body fat, but if a loop of intestine comes through, it could strangulate and cause serious problems. It's not particularly related to WLS and repairing it or not has nothing to do with the outcome of a VSG procedure.

When I had my gallbladder removed, 2 years after my VSG, the surgeon actually created an umbilical hernia in my abdomen. He pulled the gallbladder out through my belly button, but the sutures he used to close the incision did not hold. So now I have a hole just above my belly button that I can literally stick my finger through. And the arrogant prick won't do anything about it. I have a $6000 deductible and don't particularly feel like having another surgery anytime soon, so I just keep poking the bulge back in and hope nothing vital comes through.

Thank you for the detailed information. I also had gallbladder surgery and I think it was related to that also. I always had a little I guess stitch or where the stitch was or suture you could feel even 5 years later on my belly button one day I couldn't feel it anymore and then felt the bulge.

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I had a massive umbilical hernia repaired at the time of my VSG.

The surgeon warned me, though, that it should be considered a temporary repair and I'd need to allow him to do a more permanent repair after I lose my unwanted weight that was helping to contribute to reoccurring hernias.

It's visible in my profile "before" pictures.

The repair done at the time of VSG with the tools they use for this made for an easy recovery compared to the two open type hernia surgeries I've had in the past. Much, much easier.

I had a massive umbilical hernia repaired at the time of my VSG.

The surgeon warned me, though, that it should be considered a temporary repair and I'd need to allow him to do a more permanent repair after I lose my unwanted weight that was helping to contribute to reoccurring hernias.

It's visible in my profile "before" pictures.

The repair done at the time of VSG with the tools they use for this made for an easy recovery compared to the two open type hernia surgeries I've had in the past. Much, much easier.

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Thank you dub. I think laparoscopic hernia repair are easier. I will talk to my surgeon to see what he says it sucks it might come back because of the weight loss.

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You might want to inquire about whether or not delaying the repair until after weight loss would be a way to get insurance coverage for a tummy tuck.

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I also have an umbilical hernia which my surgeon did not want to fix during my Dec '15 VSG- instead he wants to wait till I have dropped most of my excess weight. He also said that it would be much more difficult than the sleeve; including a six week recovery period off work. 50 more lbs to go and I'll be there.

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Really I heard hernia were easy maybe they were not talking about umbilical

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My surgeon told me he didn't do umbilical hernias during VSG. He said I had to wait to lose my weight then go back in and fix it.

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Edited June 12, 201610 yr by melissajoi

My surgeon found an umbilical hernia during my surgery that I did not know I had. He said it was almost in the way, but he was able to work around it. He also said it does need to be repaired, but not until I have lost a significant amount of weight.

It sounds like it could have been a reason to stop my surgery, so thank goodness he we able to work around it!

My surgeon found an umbilical hernia during my surgery that I did not know I had. He said it was almost in the way, but he was able to work around it. He also said it does need to be repaired, but not until I have lost a significant amount of weight.

It sounds like it could have been a reason to stop my surgery, so thank goodness he we able to work around it!

Wow , it can stop the surgery! That's hard to hear let's see what they tell me. I can't exercise because of it I was on a exercise routing & made it worse I think so I decided to just have the surgery to help me with the weight loss.

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Edited June 14, 201610 yr by lvfavy

My surgeon told me he didn't do umbilical hernias during VSG. He said I had to wait to lose my weight then go back in and fix it.

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Do you also have an umbilical hernia ? Did you know about it prior ?

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My surgeon told me he didn't do umbilical hernias during VSG. He said I had to wait to lose my weight then go back in and fix it.

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Do you also have an umbilical hernia ? Did you know about it prior ?

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Yeah I have one. I knew about it ahead of time. I asked him at my first visit if he could fix it. He said no. He only did hiatal hernias

Edited June 14, 201610 yr by melissajoi

My surgeon told me he didn't do umbilical hernias during VSG. He said I had to wait to lose my weight then go back in and fix it.

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Do you also have an umbilical hernia ? Did you know about it prior ?

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Yeah I have one. I knew about it ahead of time. I asked him at my first visit if he could fix it. He said no. He only did hiatal hernias

Thank you, I'll keep you posted on what my surgeon says

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LOL on surgeon working around it and waiting until later to repair.

My surgeon looked at mine during my pre-op visits and said without a doubt that monsta had to be dealt with during the VSG surgery. It was insanely large.