Hernia Care

AU Health's Comprehensive Hernia Center offers: 

• Multidisciplinary care: A team of providers from many specialties working together to provide your care.
• Hernia expertise: Our providers are board-certified and fellowship-trained in minimally invasive surgery and hernia repair surgery.
• Advanced surgical techniques: Hernia surgery has come a long way. Today many procedures can be performed safely and effectively through small incisions, using robotic technology, with less pain and shorter recovery times.

Hernias can occur anywhere in the body. We treat many kinds of hernias, including:

• Inguinal hernias: The most common form of hernia and one of the most common reasons for surgery in the United States.  These hernias occur near the crease where your leg joins your lower abdomen.  Patients will notice a bulge, as the hernia forms and progresses, that often disappears when they lie down and come right back when they stand up.  They can cause mild pain or discomfort, so patients may seek surgery to repair theses hernias. 

• Ventral hernias: Commonly form at (or above) the belly button (umbilical hernias).  While most of these hernias form along the middle of your abdomen, they can also, but rarely, form off to the sides (these are called spigelian hernias).  Similar to inguinal hernias, many of these will eventually cause some pain or discomfort and thus may require repair. 

• Incisional hernias: Form at any site where you have had a prior surgery.  These can even form at sites used for minimally invasive surgery such as laparoscopic or robotic port sites.  These types of hernias can range in size and severity from small to extremely large and can require very complex procedures to repair.  If you notice a bulge at a prior surgical site, there is a good chance that you have formed a hernia there and should meet with a surgeon to discuss your options.

• Hiatal hernias: Occur inside your body at the diaphragm (the large muscle that helps you breathe and separates the chest from the belly).  The stomach can herniate up through the diaphragm when you have a hiatal hernia.  For many patients this may be completely asymptomatic or can cause gastroesophageal reflux (GERD).  When they grow larger they can cause difficulty swallowing, nausea, vomiting, and even bleeding in some cases.  Not all hiatal hernias require surgery, but if you are found to have one, it's worth discussing with a surgeon to determine whether or not yours should be fixed. 

Hernias should be fixed if they cause symptoms, such as pain or visible bulging. Most hernia repairs are performed using a synthetic or prosthetic piece of mesh, implanted during surgery, to prevent the hernia from returning. Except in emergent conditions, your surgeon will want you to prepare for surgery by minimizing your risk during surgery. This is done by quitting smoking, controlling diabetes, and losing weight. Weight loss is encouraged to prevent the hernia from returning.

There are two different approaches for repairing hernias. Both can have excellent results when performed by our expert surgeons. During your appointment, your surgeon will talk with you about your options, and which one may be best for you.

• Open surgical repair: Involves an incision directly over the hernia. Mesh is generally implanted through this incision and used to reinforce the area where the hernia previously had formed.
• Minimally invasive surgery (MIS): Hernia repairs can be performed with minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures or using da Vinci robotic surgery. Both involve the use of small cuts to access the abdomen away from the hernia. Special instruments are then used to insert the mesh and reinforce the area of the hernia. Minimally invasive repairs are generally associated with less pain and faster recovery than open surgical repairs. However, not every type of hernia can be repaired through this approach.