Although surgery to repair a hernia is a fairly basic operation, there is still the risk of potential complications. Understanding these risks and balancing them against the severity of your particular hernia can help you to reach an informed decision about whether surgery is right for you.
Hernia
According to the MedlinePlus website, a hernia occurs where a portion of the intestinal tract slips through a hole or weakness in the abdominal wall. Symptoms do not usually abate on their own and can become worse with time, making surgery necessary in many cases to avoid complications such as strangulation of the intestine. These symptoms include discomfort in the groin or a lump present in the groin or upper thigh (femoral hernia) that varies in size and shape with movement.
Hernia Surgery
As far as surgeries go, hernia operations are simple procedures. During the operation, the surgeon will create a small incision in your abdomen, followed by retraction of the "escaped" coil of intestines. Following this, the hole in the wall of the abdominal muscles will be patched with a relatively durable surgical mesh to reduce the risk of recurrence.
Cosmetic Complications
One disorder that can result from hernia surgery is cosmetic in nature--the possibility of scar tissue forming at the site of the surgery. While scar tissue presents no real threat, it can create body image problems in some cases. If you are excessively affected by the presence of scar tissue in your abdominal region following hernia surgery, scar-reduction cosmetic surgery might help.
Procedural Disorders
As with any operation, there are certain risks inherent to the procedure of being operated on. According to the Society of Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, these risks include the possibility of infection and excessive bleeding during the procedure. However, both of these risks are fairly minor, in that they can be readily treated on an outpatient basis, adding no real time to your surgical procedure.
Additional Disorders
Recurrence of the hernia is always a possible disorder following surgery. However, this cannot be readily avoided, except by attempting to avoid the activity that caused the hernia in the first place. Additionally, there is a risk of damage to surrounding organs during the procedure, but this is exceedingly slight and can be minimized by selecting a surgeon with a lot of experience in treating hernias. Finally, transient urinary disorders are also common--you may have issues initiating the flow of urine for a week or so after the treatment, due to the post-operative discomfort caused by flexing those particular muscles.
