Sparky said:

Think about that for a moment. a 3 day stay, cost him $330! A 3 day stay in a major hospital here in Grand Rapids would probably cost more like $15,000 PLUS the surgery!!

If it weren't for Sparky's advice to me, I would have had no idea about this procedure. I'd never heard of it.

My own Dr., when I asked him why more doctor's here are not using the Shouldice Method looked at me and rubbed his fingers together.....saying it's all about the money in America... It's all about a permanent fix in Canada.

I thought the nine month wait was for pre-natal care!

Whats strange is that many Canadians opt to go to Cuba for specialized surgery. My friends dad needed a special surgery done on his eyes which isn't done here in Canada. There were only 4 hospitals in the US that do it. He got quotes running from 26K to 34K at the American hospitals. The Canadian OHIP system only vouched to cover 5K of his costs.

He flew to Cuba and the got the operation done for $4400, which included a stay for a week in a nice beachside hotel while they monitored his recovery. Turns out that the Cuban doctor was the one who invented the surgery 7 years ago and boasted the best stats for uncomplicated recovery. The US hospitals were emulating his techniques with a slightly lower success rate. Go figure.

I'm in the same boat... looking at addressing mine this year... my how our reading interests change as we age....lol

After some inquiry, I was pleased to discover that my Kaiser doc uses the laparoscopic method for hernia repair: small incisions, quick recovery, exercise (moderate for a while) encouraged, $15.00 copay. That's $15, not $1500! Whew...will give a follow up report on this if anyone's interested.

Thanks for the education and direction, folks! I am relieved about this, I gotta say!

As an aside, I find it interesting that Canada's health care system, so demonized by many in the US, proves superior in at least one way. Go figure.

Both the Canadian and US systems have their benefits and downfalls. The Canadian system keeps the doctors and hospitals in check as far as rising costs but often there are longer wait times for treatment. On a social level its more fair in the sense that a filthy rich dude with a bad drinking habit can't buy their way in front of you for an liver transplant. You would have to leave the country and do that elsewhere. Wallet biopsies are not performed in Canada. People with mental problems such as manic depression and other pre disposed conditions don't have to worry HMO's turning them down with the old "not at this time" line. An incredibly expensive operation or long term care will not leave a family bankrupt. There is some peace of mind which comes with that. If a person is extremely well off/permanently employed and have a relatively clean bill of health, these things may not matter so much. Some people are not so fortunate and it does.

For me, the hardest part of my post-surgery was getting out of bed in the morning. I had to learn to roll sideways as I got up, since sitting upright wasn't possible until many weeks after my surgery. Good luck to you! Always allow twice as much time as the doctors tell you.

I had a similar operation some 36 years ago

small incision, not traumatic repair, I frankly do not remind the details out of the few days of recovery, but it did not seem to be very long.. may be 3-4 weeks and of course being cautious ... of course you are, because you feel as soon an effort is not well distributed

Great post, Emmery, lots of truth.

A quick follow up: Turns out that for my particular type of hernia, my doc didn't think laproscopic would be the way to go due to potential complications should I ever have prostate issues.

I'm guessing the operation went well...As I was being wheeled to the OR on the gurney, the anesthesiologist said "the IV is going." 30 seconds later, I woke up in the recovery room, surgery complete. Getting old isn't much fun, but it sure beats the alternative. I haven't been in a whole lot of pain, and have kept the Vicodin consumption to only one so far. Hate that crap. Walked 1/2 hour today. I should be working next week, back on the bike in two weeks.

Cheers!

The second and third post op days were the worst form me. Takes 24 hours for the anesthisia to completely wear off. I've had two hernia repairs (one on each side). Stay off the Vicodin if you can. Bad constipation which doesn't go well with a recent hernia repair. No one ever died from pain.

Starting to finally get a little sore, especially painful when sitting up. Yeah, not a big fan of vicodin for that reason, especially in this particular operation. Suddenly I'm craving prunes

Good luck and patience... What will you do in the meantime ?

Usually hernia come from a bad elevation move is not it ? The case for me, not blocking enough the belt to use the legs raising even not heavy things with the back not straight..

Regards

Glad it went well! Things don't always work out as planned but a surgeon has to tailor the operation to the actual intraoperative scenario.

Take it easy and hope you'll be back to work in no time! :-)

Thanks, Isaac and Electone and everyone. It probably came from a lifetime of lifting heavy things, as well as the inherent weak spots in the abdominal wall. I moved pianos for many years before I was a full time tech. I recently helped one of my clients reposition her Mason and Hamlin BB, the heaviest 7 foot piano ever made, in my estimation. Poor decision making skills on my part.... But I didn't notice the hernia until one day when I was playing catch with my son.

I'll be on line a fair amount, playing the piano, walking, watching the super bowl, all the things I don't have time to do when I'm working on pianos! It's kind of nice to get a break. I don't take enough time off when I'm healthy, just because I'm afraid of forced time off like this. So I'm going to try to enjoy it as much as I can.

Easy on the vicodin Dave, or we will start calling you House.

Pain is actually not good for you--- unfortunately, I have had plenty of experience with this. The idea that "No one ever died from pain," is simply not true. Of course, over-doing it with narcotics is not good either. My experience with surgery at Kaiser was, that they wanted me--- told me straight up--- to take sufficient medication to control the post-op pain (working with the doc to find the right dosage); particularly, they wanted me to participate fully in a pretty aggressive program of physical therapy very soon after the surgery. They had me at it well before I left the hospital, and for quite awhile afterward.

It was challenging, but good--- they know what makes you get well faster. There is enough suffering in life without borrowing it unnecessarily. Some discomfort is to be expected; that is not the same thing as real post-op pain.

Glad it went well, Dave--- you were out before I knew you were in. My best wishes for your recovery.

Vicodin contains synthetic codeine. One of the side effects of codeine is constipation that can be countered with probiotics.

Dave you should be able to find this product or similar in the US.
Maybe best to use the pills instead of the fermented milk solution as that would not be so pleasant to consume. Sour milk is what it amounts to.

http://www.biokplus.com/

Oh, one other thing, ice packs. They work great (for local pain control, not constipation ).

An ice pack is good. Walking is good. It's being in a static position for a great length of time that causes things to stiffen up. As far as de-constipators, I've got a magnesium supplement called "Calm," as well as the prescribed stool softener. Dan, I'll check out your recommendation should I be put in a tight spot....

So............. How's it hanging, or, you know, how you doing?

Hi Ralph. Recovery has been faster than I expected. Follow up appointment was good, bodily functions are functioning functionally. It's still slightly painful to lie down or to get out of bed, but not like the first week.

I only took the Vicodin a few times, but the risk of binding up the innards was scarier than a little pain from the wound.... I've been walking every day, yesterday in the hills near my home.

Yesterday I did a trial tuning on my own piano, a Mason AA. The only physical difficulty with that was hoisting the lid! It's a heavy sucker. I plan to tune a piano for a school today, and possibly another. I'll resume a normal schedule today.

It was actually good to have a week where I couldn't do much. I caught up on my reading, did my taxes, and played a little music.

Glad to hear you on the road Dave.....

Excellent! Your on the mend. It's all down hill from here, or up hill, or, well, you know what I mean.

I think it's part of approaching the "over the hill" thingy...

Thanks, gentlemen. Next week, it's back on the bike, which is always an uphill struggle. The downhill part is easy!

Great news Dave on your recovery. I have had 4 hernia surgeries since 1985. Maybe some of the things I have learned will help you.

If you need to cough or sneeze, keep your legs slightly bent and bend your body at the waist. Or, cross you legs sitting or standing.

Also keep your bowels loose, or the strain will start the whole thing again.

I have learned to use my upper body more and my legs less.