Skip to main content

Incisional Hernia Treatment

If you notice a painful bulge near your surgery scar, you might have an incisional hernia. It can cause discomfort, swelling, or pressure on your abdomen near the site of a past surgery. While incisional hernias are not unusual, they do require expert care. The hernia specialists at UVA Health can treat your hernia and get you back to feeling like yourself.

What Is an Incisional Hernia?

After surgery, the area where the doctor cut can be weaker than before. Sometimes, the muscles in that spot don’t heal all the way. If the area stays weak, tissue inside your abdominal cavity can push through and cause a hernia.

Some signs of an incisional hernia are:

  • A bulge near your surgical scar
  • Pain near your surgical scar
  • Pain that gets worse when you lift heavy objects, cough, or strain
  • Stomach problems, like constipation, nausea, or vomiting

An incisional hernia can happen any time after surgery. But it’s most common 3 to 6 months after your procedure. 

Treating an Incisional Hernia at UVA Health

A hernia after surgery won’t go away on its own. If the hernia is small and not causing you pain, your doctor might suggest that you watch and wait. But if you’re in pain, they’ll most likely recommend hernia repair surgery.

Surgery for Incisional Hernias

During hernia repair surgery, your surgeon makes a one larger cut or several smaller cuts near the hernia to push the bulge back inside. Then, they close the weak spot with stitches or mesh.

Fixing an incisional hernia can be more complex than other hernia repairs. That’s because the area already has scar tissue from your first surgery. Scar tissue can make it harder to see and move things around during a surgical procedure. Finding an experienced hernia repair surgeon who can work carefully around that tissue is important.

There are different kinds of hernia repair surgeries:

  • Open hernia repair surgery: Your doctor makes a cut near the hernia and fixes it directly.
  • Laparoscopic hernia repair surgery: Your doctor makes a tiny cut near the hernia and uses special small tools to fix the hernia.
  • Robotic hernia repair surgery: This is similar to laparoscopic surgery, but the doctor uses a robot to help guide the tools, allowing your doctor to make more precise movements during surgery.

Why Did I Get an Incisional Hernia?

Incisional hernias can happen to anyone who has had surgery in their abdominal area. Other than having surgery, there might not be a clear reason why you get one. But some things can make hernias after surgery more likely to form, including:

  • Having emergency surgery
  • Having surgery that requires a large incision
  • Exercising too early after surgery
  • Lifting heavy objects or straining after surgery
  • Being overweight
  • Smoking

Advanced Incisional Hernia Care Close to Home

If you have a hernia after surgery, you want an experienced team of specialists who can help you heal. At UVA Health, our fellowship-trained surgeons have the expertise to treat your hernia with care. They have access to the tools and knowledge needed to repair your incisional hernia close to home.

Learn more about the hernia care we offer in Charlottesville, Culpeper, and Northern Virginia.