A 68-year-old man was successfully treated for massive groin hernia which had kept him in severe pain for over a decade, doctors at AIIMS said today.
Parts of the patient's small and large intestine protruded through the weak area of his lower abdominal wall (groin) producing a bulge under the skin, said Dr M C Mishra, Director All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
The patient had some 10 years ago also undergone surgery for the right sided hernia. However, this time it was on the left side and much larger, he said.
"Delay in the surgery would have led to problems of pulmonary and cardiac functions. The patient was a heavy smoker too, contributing to the complications," said Dr Mishra, one of the country's leading surgeons with already over 1,000 groin surgeries to his credit.
Considering the risk of respiratory dysfunction, which the patient might have suffered from if intestines and organs had pushed back wrongly, the patient was asked to practice some respiratory exercises prior to the surgery, he said.
"Laparoscopic surgery is hardly used to perform surgery for such giant hernia problems. But, we performed the surgery under general anesthesia keeping in mind the entire problem. To bring back the intestine and organs, the patient was turned upside down. The surgery was finally successful," he added.
As per government data, 300,000 groin hernia surgeries take place in India every year.
Medical sciences state that groin hernia once formed never goes away or becomes smaller on its own. Large hernias can extend into the scrotum, put pressure on surrounding tissues and become painful.
The patient who hails from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh is under observation in the ICU for 48 hours following which he will be shifted him to the general ward.
