More people than you may realise suffer from an inguinal hernia – in fact, it is the most common form of them all. When you have a hernia, an internal portion of your body begins to push through a weakened spot in the muscle or abdominal wall. In an inguinal hernia, there could be a slight lump or swelling in the groin, or you may have an enlarged scrotum. The lump or swelling often becomes noticeable when you lift a heavy object, and it will disappear if you are lying down. But what can cause inguinal hernias, and what are its known symptoms? What is the best treatment for it? Read on to find out more about its causes, symptoms, and different kinds of treatment.
The Causes
As mentioned, inguinal hernia results from a portion of your bowel (like the intestine) or some fatty tissue protruding through your groin, usually at the uppermost portion of the inner thigh. The fatty tissue or intestine may begin to protrude via a weakened spot in the muscle wall into an area referred to as the inguinal canal.
Most inguinal hernias occur in men, and these hernias happen due to ageing (although it’s important to remember that inguinal hernias can happen whether you are young, middle-aged, or old). But it occurs mostly in men of a certain age since the muscles surrounding your abdomen grows weaker.
Sometimes, an inguinal hernia suddenly appears after heavy straining or carrying something heavy. As a hernia repair specialist in London attests, some inguinal hernias have also been connected to heavy, persistent coughing.
The Treatment
You will most likely be asked to undergo surgery to repair the hernia and push it back into place. What you should know is that if you leave it be, chances are that it will worsen and become bigger, so the best recourse for it is often surgery. Surgery is also recommended if your inguinal hernia is painful and its symptoms are severe or persistent. It is better to have surgery to prevent complications from developing, which can sometimes be life-threatening. These complications include obstruction, where a bowel section is stuck within the inguinal canal. Another complication you want to avoid is strangulation, where a portion of your bowel is trapped, and it has no more supply of blood – this would require surgery within hours so that the tissue’s blood supply will be restored, as confirmed by specialists in hernia surgery in London such as The London Surgical Group.
The Kinds Of Surgery
Surgery may be divided into two kinds: open surgery or laparoscopic surgery. With open surgery, you will have a single large incision made on your abdomen; the surgeon will then manually push the hernia back into the belly or abdominal wall. With laparoscopic surgery, you will have several smaller incisions made on the abdomen to allow surgeons to insert different instruments used for hernia repair. This is a less invasive procedure, but it has to be done by experts as the technique involving it is more difficult.
Both procedures have disadvantages, and both have advantages as well. But the good news is that you can often go home on the same day with both surgeries, although the recovery period for open surgery will take longer.
