Laparoscopic Hernia Repair

Gilmore’s Groin & Hernia Clinic

Laparoscopic Hernia Repair is a technique to fix tears in the abdominal wall (muscle) using small incisions, telescopes and a patch (mesh). Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernia Repair may offer a quicker return to work and normal activities with a decreased pain for some patients.

Surgery

In this approach, a laparoscope (a small telescope) connected to a special camera is inserted through a cannula, a small hollow tube, allowing the surgeon to view the hernia and surrounding tissue on a video screen.

Other cannulas are inserted which allow your surgeon to work inside. Three small (0.5mm) incisions are usually necessary. The hernia is repaired from behind the abdominal wall. A small piece of surgical mesh is placed over the hernia defect and held in place with small surgical staples. This operation is usually performed with general anesthesia.

Are you a suitable candidate for laparoscopic hernia repair?

Only after a thorough examination can your surgeon determine whether laparoscopic hernia repair is right for you. The procedure may not be best for some patients who have had previous abdominal surgery or underlying medical conditions.

What are other possible complications that can occur?

  • Any operation may be associated with complications. The primary complications of any operation are bleeding and infection, which are uncommon with laparoscopic hernia repair.
  • There is a slight risk of injury to the urinary bladder, the intestines, blood vessels, nerves or the sperm tube going to the testicle.
  • Difficulty urinating after surgery is not unusual and may require a temporary tube into the urinary bladder for as long as one week.
  • Any time a hernia is repaired it can come back. This long-term recurrence rate is not yet known but it appears no higher than with open conventional repair.
Gilmore’s Groin & Hernia Clinic