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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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.

Dub,

You were the first person on here to let me know some surgeons operate on it. I'm hoping to hear mine does. I really don't want to keep going for so many surgeries. Do you think it made recovery harder ?

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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.

Dub,

You were the first person on here to let me know some surgeons operate on it. I'm hoping to hear mine does. I really don't want to keep going for so many surgeries. Do you think it made recovery harder ?

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I'd already had umbilical hernias repaired on two prior surgeries...10 & 5 years prior to my VSG. Both were open type out-patient surgeries that hurt like hell to recover from. Outa work for 5-6 weeks for both.

Then there was my VSG surgery with a simultaneous umbilical repair done with same tools he used for the the VSG.

I was out of work for 3 weeks.

Had it just been sleeve surgery, then I'd have only been out a week.

I knew at the time of my VSG & hernia surgery.....that the hernia repair should be considered temporary. Losing the weight over the next 18 months would have my ab muscles tighten and be in a better state for a more permanent repair.

It wasn't bad at all, though. The recovery this time was a cakewalk compared to last time.

Two things that I would advise you having at home and making even easier work of it:

1) a recliner to sleep and recover in. Much easier than trying to lay flat in a bed.

2) raised toilet seat insert. They simply fit over the bowl and raise the height of the toilet seat a few inches. So much easier to sit and stand from an elevated height.

I used the liquid pain meds for just a couple days and then was good.

Ok, so one thing I was told about umbilical hernia repair in conjunction with any gastrointestinal surgery, .....

Some umbilical hernias can just be repaired with suture and that's fine, you can do that while you are in mucking around with other things. But ideally, the hernia should be repaired with surgical mesh. The problem with that is although the repair will hold better in the long tun, using mesh carries a higher risk of infection. (You know all those commercials about lawsuits for bladder mesh slings? That's because the mesh was never meant to be used that way...that's why there are complications with it). And whenever you are dealing with cutting into the intestines or stomach, you are potentially releasing bacteria that could seed the mesh. Your abdominal cavity is sterile, but the inside of your GI tract is not. I assume this is why some surgeons, especially those that use mesh rather than sutures,do not want to repair an umbilical hernia at the same time as WLS.

@@Dub , makes me wonder if your two previous repairs were done with mesh or suture since they had to be redone.

Ok, so one thing I was told about umbilical hernia repair in conjunction with any gastrointestinal surgery, .....

Some umbilical hernias can just be repaired with suture and that's fine, you can do that while you are in mucking around with other things. But ideally, the hernia should be repaired with surgical mesh. The problem with that is although the repair will hold better in the long tun, using mesh carries a higher risk of infection. (You know all those commercials about lawsuits for bladder mesh slings? That's because the mesh was never meant to be used that way...that's why there are complications with it). And whenever you are dealing with cutting into the intestines or stomach, you are potentially releasing bacteria that could seed the mesh. Your abdominal cavity is sterile, but the inside of your GI tract is not. I assume this is why some surgeons, especially those that use mesh rather than sutures,do not want to repair an umbilical hernia at the same time as WLS.

@@Dub , makes me wonder if your two previous repairs were done with mesh or suture since they had to be redone.

Kindle,

Thanks for the information I really was wondering why some surgeons are against it. This makes sense to avoid bacteria.

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Ok, so one thing I was told about umbilical hernia repair in conjunction with any gastrointestinal surgery, .....

Some umbilical hernias can just be repaired with suture and that's fine, you can do that while you are in mucking around with other things. But ideally, the hernia should be repaired with surgical mesh. The problem with that is although the repair will hold better in the long tun, using mesh carries a higher risk of infection. (You know all those commercials about lawsuits for bladder mesh slings? That's because the mesh was never meant to be used that way...that's why there are complications with it). And whenever you are dealing with cutting into the intestines or stomach, you are potentially releasing bacteria that could seed the mesh. Your abdominal cavity is sterile, but the inside of your GI tract is not. I assume this is why some surgeons, especially those that use mesh rather than sutures,do not want to repair an umbilical hernia at the same time as WLS.

@@Dub , makes me wonder if your two previous repairs were done with mesh or suture since they had to be redone.

First repair was done with mesh. Second was with deep stitches.

This last repair, done during my VSG, was done with deep stitches.

My Achilles heel, it would appear, is my beer gut, lol.