POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
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POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby jefftee » Tue Aug 30, 2011 12:20 pm
Had surgery back in June 2010, 57 years of age.
I was riding and racing a few months later and seemed to be recovering okay. Since then I've had a few bouts of abdominal and groin discomfort which, although not excruciating agony, is enough to put you off riding with any amount of effort or enthusiasm.
I just seem to be getting back into it again and the problem of discomfort returns.
I've checked a few hernia forums and it seems that it's not an unknown problem, although my GP seems skepticalI presume the surgeon who did the job would be even more skeptical.
Anybody had the problem and how did you/do you deal with it?
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby bigfriendlyvegan » Wed Aug 31, 2011 12:57 am
I had tenderness and a pulling sensation for over a year on my left hand side. It went away, eventually, but I'm still prone to muscle pulls on that side of my groin. Nothing is bulging, though.
I did nothing in particular to make it go away, but that was a couple of years before my re-birth in cycling. The second procedure was done after that as well and I was cycling all the way up to the op and then 10 days after it. I rode to the doctors appointments, in fact. Maybe the increased fitness/muscle and less fat made a difference.
Maybe you should ask for an ultrasound on the area to make sure nothing was placed wrongly and that the surgery held. Did you have an old fashioned sew up repair or a mesh repair? Was it open surgery or laparoscopic? How big was the repair? My first one (the problematic one) was very large, the second not so much.
David
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby toolonglegs » Wed Aug 31, 2011 1:07 am
Might be worth a look though.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby jefftee » Thu Sep 01, 2011 11:08 am
The discomfort seems to be more of a "gut" problem than muscular, although I do get pain in groin and testicle area.
I did have a scan earlier in the year to check it out but nothing unusual was found.
Anyway, I'm seeing the doc again tomorrow and I'm going to pursue it further.
I guess you put up with it for a while, just presuming that things are just "settling down" but I think I've waited long enough.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby pauls51 » Thu Sep 01, 2011 11:20 am
Sorry to OP for hijacking but, I have a similar pain and the doc has told me that this muscle takes a fairly long time to heal because there is no supporting tissue (I cant remember his exact wording)... I don't get the pain much when riding but when I lift myself of the ground i get the discomfort from that muscle..... I especially feel it when arching my back backwards in an attempt to stretch it.... What was suggested to you if you don't mind me asking...??toolonglegs wrote:I got checked for a couple of types of hernia due to severe groin pain...in my case it was a problem with a psoas muscle.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby bigfriendlyvegan » Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:24 pm
+1 for arching myself backwards and getting pain. I'd forgotten about that. This sounds like a possible culprit. Maybe some core exercises?pauls51 wrote:Sorry to OP for hijacking but, I have a similar pain and the doc has told me that this muscle takes a fairly long time to heal because there is no supporting tissue (I cant remember his exact wording)... I don't get the pain much when riding but when I lift myself of the ground i get the discomfort from that muscle..... I especially feel it when arching my back backwards in an attempt to stretch it.... What was suggested to you if you don't mind me asking...??toolonglegs wrote:I got checked for a couple of types of hernia due to severe groin pain...in my case it was a problem with a psoas muscle.
David
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby pauls51 » Fri Sep 02, 2011 10:03 am
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby jefftee » Fri Sep 02, 2011 10:25 am
He's a bit older and probably not as active but after a conversation a few weeks ago he said that he still has various pains, presumably related to the surgery, after activities such as gardening. I'm wondering if people who were in extreme discomfort before surgery are willing to put up with a bit of pain post-surgery.
I didn't really have a lot of pain with my hernia and just thought I'd "better get it fixed up".
No worries about 'hijacking" OP. It's all interesting.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby toolonglegs » Fri Sep 02, 2011 4:00 pm
I was going to a physio and will start again soon...stretching,massage and laser therapy (I think).I am doing all my stretching of it during rides...get warmed up then get off the bike and the grab the top tube and do a big lunge and then sink into it stretching out my groin.It is a tough one to get to!.pauls51 wrote:Sorry to OP for hijacking but, I have a similar pain and the doc has told me that this muscle takes a fairly long time to heal because there is no supporting tissue (I cant remember his exact wording)... I don't get the pain much when riding but when I lift myself of the ground i get the discomfort from that muscle..... I especially feel it when arching my back backwards in an attempt to stretch it.... What was suggested to you if you don't mind me asking...??toolonglegs wrote:I got checked for a couple of types of hernia due to severe groin pain...in my case it was a problem with a psoas muscle.
I have pain when in bed,mainly an ache.When I arch my back backwards I feel it as well but I have more serious issues that I feel more.I felt it a lot on the bike but it is not as bad these days.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby eddy montignac » Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:34 am
I am 68, an ex-road racer, and still ride fairly hard three days a week.
I'm now wondering about the long term effects any post-operation problems might have on my riding, and (as I'm not currently suffering any discomfort from the hernia) whether it's better to opt for watchful waiting
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby jefftee » Thu Sep 22, 2011 12:39 pm
I've read about numerous surveys that have been done and there seems to be a reasonable percentage of people that have some sort of post-surgery pain long after the event.
I saw the surgeon 6 weeks after the op and that was it.
Further to my previous post, I had a barium enema (oh the pain) a couple of weeks ago, which showed up nothing of any note. The GP thought there might be indication of Irritable Bowel Syndrome so he gave me some tablets.
I may be a layman but I think he's way off the mark. The pain does reach into the bowel area sometimes but I have lower groin pain which doesn't seem to relate at all. My whole digestive system worked perfectly and felt fine before the op.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby Schmenz » Thu Sep 22, 2011 1:08 pm
if there is a poor core - the psoas will be over active and you can get an increase in the lumbar curve.
work on the core but talk to a chiro, physio or exercise physiologist. you can do situps and use the hip flexors (inc psoas) and not much core at all so you want to make sure you do them properly and using the correct muscles. (Most people cheat in a standard situp )
also work on the glutes. typically when theres a poor core you will also find weak glutes.
by restoring the correct balance in length and tone to the psoas, glutes, low back muscluature and hamstrings the psoas can stop over working and may help reduce the pain.
if theres adhesions post surgery - well thats another story.
(all this is said without examining you but it would be something i would be looking at)
Edit: all of this is said assuming that everything has been checked and cleared by the gp and surgeon. naturally that needs to be checked first
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby sogood » Thu Sep 22, 2011 1:10 pm
In health and disease, anything may happen.pauls51 wrote:I only started getting the pain recently after an indoor soccer game.. When I do get onto core exercises I feel pain for the first few then it disappears and reappears 20 minutes after doing the exercises! Lunges for me is what really hurts....
In your specific case given the surgery was 12 months ago, a number of possibilities exist. For a start and given the time gap, this could well be a new and unrelated problem to your prior surgery. Other possibilities include adhesion, recurrence of hernia, mesh failure and many many others. The only way to know more is to further investigate through your GP/surgeon.
RK wrote:And that is Wikipedia - I can write my own definition.
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Re: POST HERNIA SURGERY DISCOMFORT/PAIN
Postby scotto » Thu Sep 22, 2011 1:38 pm
+1sogood wrote:In health and disease, anything may happen.pauls51 wrote:I only started getting the pain recently after an indoor soccer game.. When I do get onto core exercises I feel pain for the first few then it disappears and reappears 20 minutes after doing the exercises! Lunges for me is what really hurts....
In your specific case given the surgery was 12 months ago, a number of possibilities exist. For a start and given the time gap, this could well be a new and unrelated problem to your prior surgery. Other possibilities include adhesion, recurrence of hernia, mesh failure and many many others. The only way to know more is to further investigate through your GP/surgeon.
oh, and if youve had a mesh repair, dont go crazy with the core strengthening bulls$%t that everyone seems to think will cure anything. Ive seen a few issues in the past with that...
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