What are incisional Hernias

Incisional hernias are usually results of surgeries involving ostomies. In this, a portion of the intestine does end up inside your incision, and then the intestine comes through the incision that wasn’t totally closed up, or that wasn’t fully sealed, which leads to an opening or defect. Ostomy patients who develop this may have this happen anytime years after surgery, or right after. 

After Laparotomy 

While there are new and new advances in techniques involving surgeries and stomas, there is still a risk for incisional hernias, and it is pretty high. This is because the long-term results of these usually are not optimal, and there is more and more emphasis on how to prevent this more than treatment. Hernia prevention is usually done through suture techniques when you’re closing, and of course understanding the incidence of these hernias during laparotomy. 

Because there is a chance that the abdominal cavity will be incised in order to get to the contents, during this there is a chance that the edges of the sound and the abdominal wall will be sutured together, closing off the skin there. The defect usually creates a scar in your abdominal wall, pressure in the abdominal cavity, and of course, if you defecate, vomit, or cough, this also may facilitate this as well. 

Incisional hernias do affect the life of the patient, and it results in issues with discomfort and self-esteem. This can account for up to 20% of complications in terms of surgery, and results in patients needing to further restrict the work and other activities. There is also the cosmetic concerns which go with this, and the quality of life is affected greatly. This also can cause bowel obstruction, strangulation, or incarceration, which means you may need to have surgery once again. 

Risk Factors 

The risk factors usually involve different actions that impact the wound healing, issues with pulmonary function, and of course higher pressure of the in abdominal area. If you have a BMI greater than 25, are male over the age of 60., have diabetes, jaundice, immunosuppression, lung problems which are chronic, are an organ transplant patient, have experienced steroid therapy or chemo, you are more at risk for an incisional hernia. 

There is also the fact that if the wound does get infected, or if you have a problem with the sutures, this may occur too. Lifestyle factors also play a part in it. Those who smoke or have nutritional deficiencies typically deal with incisional hernias a whole lot more than others may do so, and it can put you at risk for those. 

Symptoms 

The biggest symptom is a large bulge near the abdominal cavity. It can look disturbing, but not every instance is painless. It may not be painful if you’re resting or not dealing with movement. However, once you start to move, it can actually cause you some pain. Vomiting, your ostomy being blocked so you’re not seeing secretions and the like also may come with this, which means you should contact the healthcare provider right away. 

Sometimes, you have no symptoms, other times you may have some major symptoms, which in that case, you will definitely want to go in and check with a doctor if that’s the case. Planning for surgical approaches to fix this may involve talking to the patient about this, and if there is a history of this happening, you may need a CT scan and the like to help with this, since it can actually help to figure out the problems at hand. It is serious and should be treated as such.