Hernia Surgery Recovery Time
Hernia surgery recovery time can vary from patient to patient, but Dr. Shirin Towfigh’s patients know they have one of the most respected hernia doctors in the United States working to improve their health. Dr. Towfigh specializes in minimally invasive surgical techniques, most frequently using laparoscopic surgical tools, but increasingly using the da Vinci surgical robot. These tools make very small incisions in the patient which allow for less scarring and faster recovery time than other surgical methods.
Dr. Towfigh specializes in abdominal wall hernia repair, and is the longest practicing hernia specialist on the West Coast with that focus. She also diagnoses and repairs female hernia complications more successfully than many other doctors; because men are more likely than women to develop a hernia, women’s hernias often go undiagnosed until they are very serious. Dr. Towfigh more easily recognizes hernia symptoms in women, which can also help women’s hernia treatment and surgical recovery.
How Long Will Recovery After Hernia Surgery Take?
Dr. Towfigh understands that all of her hernia patients are different, but she strives to ensure they recover as quickly as possible. Abdominal wall hernias, which she specializes in diagnosing and treating, are more complex surgical cases, and sometimes healing can take longer than expected because of how sensitive the area can be. However, there are a few guidelines to hernia surgery recovery time, which patients can use to better understand what is happening in their bodies:
- Patients normally return home the same day as their surgery.
- They can begin light exercise and a normal healthy diet within one to two days after surgery. Exercise like walking and stretching is recommended to keep the body in good shape and help the surgical cite heal.
- Eating a high fiber diet and drinking plenty of water helps prevent constipation, which can worsen healing from a hernia, or cause another one.
- Full recovery, including return to work and exercise, comes within 1 to 2 weeks; if the patient engages in heavy lifting or vigorous exercise, this is not recommended until 4 weeks have passed.
- If a patient routinely lifts heavy objects at work or home, it is recommended that the patient speak with Dr. Towfigh before engaging in these activities.
- Sometimes supportive undergarments like sports underwear or a girdle can help the area heal.
What About Complications?
If you have any of the following symptoms immediately following your hernia surgery, seek emergency help:
- Persistent pain resistant to medication.
- Vomiting or nausea lasting beyond an hour
- A high fever (greater than 101°F)
- Increasingly high pain, redness, and warmth near the incisions
- Draining pus around the incision
- A burning sensation while urinating, or difficulty while urinating
- Persistent watery diarrhea (more than three times daily)
Sometimes, patients have complications after surgery. It is important to follow Dr. Towfigh’s post-surgical advice, and ask her any questions before and after surgery, to prevent as many complications as possible. However, hernia surgery complications may occur in some rare cases, because of reactions to anesthesia or a recurrence of the hernia.
Dr. Towfigh uses the latest surgical technology to help speed her patients’ recovery. By using laparoscopic surgical techniques, she reduces the size of incisions to help prevent incisional hernias, which can occur when the fascia around the abdominal wall are weakened after more invasive surgical procedures. Because she uses minimally invasive procedures, she can also perform incisional hernia repair as necessary.
