Hernia?

Love2Cats
Love2Cats Member Posts: 127
in Colorectal Cancer #1
I have seen several references to hernias here on the board. Is this something that is common after having a colon resection or some other type of colon related surgery?

Had a resection done in December 2010, but no one told me to watch out for a hernia. Can someone enlighten me on possible risks.

Thanks for your help,

Sandy

Comments

  • gerryo
    gerryo Member Posts: 50
    #2
    my husband has a large
    my husband has a large hernia. don't know much about it, but was told it is because his abdominal wall was so weak after his surgery. hope someone has a better answer for you.

    gerry
  • Lovekitties
    Lovekitties Member Posts: 3,364 Member
    #3
    What little I have read
    says that abdominal surgery can result with hernia problems. A hernia is where an internal organ (in abdomine often the intestines) are not being held by the internal muscles/tissues and will cause protusions of the skin.

    The best that you can do is to be very careful about what you do which would stress the abdomine, such as not lifting heavy items.

    In many cases additional surgery can be required to repair it.
  • ATHLETE21
    ATHLETE21 Member Posts: 5
    #4
    HERNIAS
    I HAD A RESECTION DONE IN 2002-2004 WITH MANY COMPLICATIONS IN THE PROCESS AND HAD SURGERY MAYBE 3/4 TIMES.UNFORTUNATELY IN MY CASE I CATCHED IN THE SURGERY ROOM A MRSA INFECTION WHICH ALMOST KILLED ME ,BUT THE MOST RELEVANT ISSUE IS IT LEFT AN ENORMOUS VENTRAL HERNIA WHICH I STILL KEEP AS THE SOLUTION SEEMS TO BE TO INSTALL A MESH IN YOUR HERNIA,WHICH ALSO INVOLVES VARIED RISKS.IN MY CASE I USE A VERY UNORTHODOX SYSTEM FOR SURVIVING AS MY RESECTION WAS AS LOW AS IT GETS AND CARRIES WITH IT BIG PROBLEMS INVOLVING GOING TO POO.ANYWAY,YOUR PROBLEM IS NORMAL AND DEPENDING ON YOUR HERNIA THERE MAY BE VARIOUS IMPROVEMENTS BEFORE GOING TO THE MESH AS IF IT FAILS AND GET AN INFECTION YOU MAY END WITH A COLOSTOMY,WHICH SOME OF US COULD AVOID.GOOD DAY.
  • AncientTiger
    AncientTiger Member Posts: 130
    #5
    Hernia are a pain the...gut
    Sorry, couldn't resist... I recently had hernia surgery, that was needed due to separation in the abdominal muscles/tissues. This was a direct result of my colon resection in March of last year.

    The way my surgeon explained it to me was that after surgery, they HOPE that the muscles will knit back together, but often times they do not. This can be uncomfortable, even painful and MAY cause damage to any intestinal tissue that pushed through the hernia. This happened in MY case. A portion of the intestinal wall was "crimped off" and had to be removed during surgery. There was also a LOT of scar tissue left over in the abdominal cavity from the first surgery that had to be removed. They put a plastic mesh in to reinforce the herniated area, then stitched the two sides together and stapled me back together.

    I'm STILL sore from this surgery, and it was in the middle of January. The surgeon explained that this isn't unusual however... hernia surgeries are often even more painful than the original colon resection, but they can definitely be worth it, especially if your situation is like mine and part of your intestine is "sticking out" through the hernia.

    The way I could tell was this... whenever I lay down and am looking at the surgical scar on my stomach, I notice "something" moving around right underneath the skin, like it's "bubbling" around in there. Gotta tell you... the first time I saw this, I had flashbacks of the scene off the movie "Alien", which sorta freaked me out. But the surgeon explained that this is just the intestine that has pushed out through the hernia and is resting directly underneath the skin. I got the understanding from him that sometimes this isn't a big deal, but you probably want to talk with your doc about it to be on the safe side ;)
  • abrub
    abrub Member Posts: 2,174 Member
    #6
    AncientTiger said:

    Hernia are a pain the...gut
    Sorry, couldn't resist... I recently had hernia surgery, that was needed due to separation in the abdominal muscles/tissues. This was a direct result of my colon resection in March of last year.

    The way my surgeon explained it to me was that after surgery, they HOPE that the muscles will knit back together, but often times they do not. This can be uncomfortable, even painful and MAY cause damage to any intestinal tissue that pushed through the hernia. This happened in MY case. A portion of the intestinal wall was "crimped off" and had to be removed during surgery. There was also a LOT of scar tissue left over in the abdominal cavity from the first surgery that had to be removed. They put a plastic mesh in to reinforce the herniated area, then stitched the two sides together and stapled me back together.

    I'm STILL sore from this surgery, and it was in the middle of January. The surgeon explained that this isn't unusual however... hernia surgeries are often even more painful than the original colon resection, but they can definitely be worth it, especially if your situation is like mine and part of your intestine is "sticking out" through the hernia.

    The way I could tell was this... whenever I lay down and am looking at the surgical scar on my stomach, I notice "something" moving around right underneath the skin, like it's "bubbling" around in there. Gotta tell you... the first time I saw this, I had flashbacks of the scene off the movie "Alien", which sorta freaked me out. But the surgeon explained that this is just the intestine that has pushed out through the hernia and is resting directly underneath the skin. I got the understanding from him that sometimes this isn't a big deal, but you probably want to talk with your doc about it to be on the safe side ;)

    It takes months after hernia surgery
    I had mine in June, and it was well over 12 weeks before I was mostly pain-free.

    Yes, these hernias are a common experience after any abdominal surgery, tho I wasn't aware I had one. Mine was found on a CT scan, but then was obvious to me (the lump in my belly whenever I coughed.) We waited 1 1/2 years before doing the repair surgery, and I could have waited longer. Medically, I was still okay. However, knowing I'd need the surgery eventually, and not wanting to wait until a crisis occurred. I decided to get it over and done with. Also, at 3 years post-resection, it gave my surgeon a good opportunity to look around again, and find nothing new!
  • khl8
    khl8 Member Posts: 807
    #7
    abrub said:

    It takes months after hernia surgery
    I had mine in June, and it was well over 12 weeks before I was mostly pain-free.

    Yes, these hernias are a common experience after any abdominal surgery, tho I wasn't aware I had one. Mine was found on a CT scan, but then was obvious to me (the lump in my belly whenever I coughed.) We waited 1 1/2 years before doing the repair surgery, and I could have waited longer. Medically, I was still okay. However, knowing I'd need the surgery eventually, and not wanting to wait until a crisis occurred. I decided to get it over and done with. Also, at 3 years post-resection, it gave my surgeon a good opportunity to look around again, and find nothing new!

    Just had Hernia surgery in
    Just had Hernia surgery in December, a direct result of the colon resection. I herniated along the iincsiaon site as well as the ostomy site. But the bright side, when the fixed it, they were able to " tuck" a little and I came out of surgery a little flatter in the tummy, not much, but a bit!
    Kathy
  • kristasplace
    kristasplace Member Posts: 957 Member
    #8
    Major hernia
    I was told after my ileostomy reversal that i was at a high risk for it herniating there. It didn't. Instead, i got seven or eight hernias everywhere else in my abdominal cavity. The intestines were getting stuck in one of the hernias, and getting squeezed off. It was horrible. Anyway, they put a huge mesh in there, and the recovery was nothing compared to the other abdominal surgeries i had. The fast recovery, and very little pain probably had a lot to do with the fact i'm completely nerve dead in my abdomen!

    I think my hernias were a result of the anastomotic stricture i got from the colon resection. Going to the bathroom is always a struggle, and i think the constant pushing caused the hernias. I wouldn't worry about restricting your activity because you "might" get a hernia. Just go at your own pace. I didn't feel comfortable lying on my stomach for several months after the surgery, but now i sleep on my tummy, and can even slide down water slides on my tummy. It's been almost a year, and the muscles still feel a little tight at times, but stronger than before.

    Enjoy!
    Kristan

Discussion Boards