Just Had Hernia Repair Surgery

I went in for outpatient inguinal hernia repair last week. I thought it was going to be laparoscopic, but it turned out an open procedure and I was hospitalized for a day. I quizzed the surgeon afterwards and his answer was "You got a hernia repair". Since this is a top surgeon I hope he will have more info when I see him next week.

The surgery was uneventful, but I had to stay over as I couldnt urinate after the procedure. I had this problem with a previous surgery, so I should have anticipated it.

The scar is 4" wide and at the height of the top of my hip bone. Pain was OK, except when getting in or out of bed (very painful). It maximized one day after surgery then slacked off quickly over the next two days. They wanted me to walk ASAP after surgery, which was ok, except for getting in and out of bed. The catheter was very unpleasnat and uncomfortable.

They gave me morphine in recovery which worked very well. Afterwards, they gave me Darvodest (darvon w/ Acetominophne) which didnt do much. I stopped taking the Darvodest 3 days after surgery.

Recovery was not too painful, except for getting in and out of bed. I walked the first two days with the aid of a cane. I had to sleep on my back for 5 days since my testicles swelled incredibly and were very painful.

Suggestions:

Even if you are expecting a laparoscopic procedure, make contingency plans (i.e. overnight bag with bathrobe and ammenities ) for a hospital in-stay.

If you have ever experienced any urination problems at all, discuss taking FLOWMAX (a prostate-targeted alpha adrenergic receptor inhibitor) in advance with your surgeon.

Discuss starting a regime of stool softeners (i.e. Duco Lax) a coiuple of days in advance of surgery. The morphine and related opiod pain killers are very constipating. And if you have the open procedure, you wont be able to "push" for a few days.