Robotic Hernia Surgery is a safe and effective treatment for many medical problems. It can be done in a doctor’s office, a surgery center or in the hospital.
Before having surgery, you should be aware of the risks and benefits. Also, it is important to choose the right surgeon for you.
Surgery is a medical procedure that involves cutting or manipulating tissues to treat diseases, injuries, or deformities. It can be done to make or confirm a diagnosis, repair damaged tissue or organs, remove an obstruction, transplant tissues or organs, or for cosmetic reasons. Surgery is done through an opening in the body, usually an incision (cut). Many surgeries now use lasers or radiology to cut and stitch tissue rather than using a scalpel. The ability to do more minimally invasive surgery is helping more and more people avoid the need for incisions and resulting scars.
Some kinds of surgery are emergency and must be performed quickly to prevent life-threatening consequences, such as stopping severe internal bleeding in the brain from a gunshot wound or during a motor vehicle accident. Other types of surgery are elective and can be scheduled for treatment or to improve a person’s quality of life. Examples of elective surgery include removing a wart or mole, having kidney stones removed, or getting a knee replacement.
Before deciding to have surgery, you and your doctor should discuss the benefits and risks of the operation. You should also know how much the surgery will cost. Many hospitals and insurance companies have tools to help you calculate the cost of an upcoming surgery.
During the surgical procedure, you will be asleep under anesthesia. After the surgery is finished, you will spend some time in a recovery room or postanesthesia care unit (PACU). The doctors and nurses in the PACU will monitor your oxygen levels, blood pressure, heart rate, and pain level.
After your surgery, you will need to follow the doctor’s instructions for recovery. This may include taking medicine to control pain, caring for the area where the surgery was done, and preventing infections.
Surgery can be a frightening prospect, especially for children. A pediatric surgeon is specially trained to deal with the emotional and physical needs of young patients who are undergoing surgery.
What are the benefits of surgery?
The benefits of surgery include reduced pain, increased mobility and a better quality of life. However, it is important to remember that not all patients will benefit from surgery and that the condition being treated may need a holistic approach including physiotherapy and rehabilitation following the operation.
Some procedures will require a tube into the stomach to suck out the contents as your intestines recover from surgery. Your doctor will explain the reason for this to you and give you instructions on how to manage the tube if needed.
A surgical procedure called a colostomy or ileostomy can be used to treat cancer of the bowel, bladder and anus. This is a permanent solution and you will have an opening (stoma) on the abdomen that is used to remove bodily waste – faeces or urine. The waste is emptied into a small plastic bag which you will need to change regularly.
Minimally invasive surgery involves making very small incisions to allow access for surgical instruments. Typically, these are “keyhole” incisions and are a half-inch long or less. During minimally invasive surgeries, surgeons place the endoscope, which has a lighted camera at the end and projects images onto a screen, into the body through one of the incisions (ports). Using these ports as entry points, the surgeon places other surgical instruments, like long, narrow tools, into your body without cutting through the skin.
It is possible to use these keyhole incisions for more complex operations, too. This type of surgery is called endovascular surgery, and it involves inserting a tiny catheter (a thin tube) into blood vessels to operate. This allows surgeons to cut away tumours or repair damaged arteries without removing the skin.
It is also possible to do endovascular surgery through existing openings in the body, such as the nose or mouth. In this type of surgery, surgeons pass a small tube, called a catheter over a guidewire into the blood vessel they are operating on and use it as an access point to the surgical site. Surgeons then operate using the long, narrow tools they have placed in your body through the catheter.
What are the risks of surgery?
Patients should be educated about the benefits and risks of surgery so they can make an informed decision. This educational process can be accomplished through a series of interactions between the surgeon and patient. One of the most important parts of this process is estimating the patient’s risk for surgical treatment. This process is important because it allows the surgeon to determine which patients are at a higher risk for postoperative complications and/or death. In addition, it helps the surgeon to plan preoperative testing and procedures. Finally, a risk assessment can help the surgeon to anticipate potential adverse events and take appropriate preemptive measures to optimize a patient’s status prior to surgery.
The risks of surgery include the possibility of infection, blood loss, damage to nerves or blood vessels, and formation of blood clots in the legs (deep vein thrombosis) or lungs (pulmonary embolism). There is also a risk of complications related to anesthesia. These risks are minimized by carefully selecting a qualified surgeon, performing a thorough medical evaluation, and following all preoperative instructions.
A person’s age, weight, and family health history are all factors that influence their level of risk for surgery. The type of procedure plays a role as well, with urgent or emergency surgery carrying the highest risk.1 Elective surgery, such as gallbladder removal or inguinal hernia repair, generally has a lower risk.
In addition, a person’s individual response to anesthesia may also play a role in his or her level of risk. Some people develop a severe reaction to anesthesia that can lead to a coma or even death. This is known as malignant hyperthermia.
Several studies have been done on the relationship between a patient’s underlying conditions and his or her surgical risk. Although these methods have been helpful, it remains challenging to identify a single factor that will accurately predict surgical outcome. This is in part because of the fact that different surgical outcomes are measured using different outcome variables. For example, some studies report on perioperative mortality and others use a combination of cardiac events and/or reoperation rates.
What are the options for surgery?
A range of operations are available and there is something for every type of problem. The surgery may be able to cure your illness, or it might just help relieve symptoms and improve your quality of life. It is important to think about what you want from an operation before you decide on it.
Some operations are quick and easy, others more complicated. It is important to discuss all the options with your surgeon before you decide what to do. Whether an operation will be successful or not will depend on many things, including how well you prepare and care for yourself after the operation, as well as the surgeon’s skill and experience.
Before surgery you will be given medication to help reduce your anxiety. You will also be told when you need to stop eating and drinking (generally six hours before surgery for adults, and two hours for children). During an operation you will have local or regional anesthesia. Local anesthesia numbs only the area that is being operated on, and you are still conscious. Regional anesthesia is more extensive, and you will sleep through most of the operation. During your surgery you will be monitored closely by nurses and doctors.
After an operation, you will normally be allowed to eat and drink once your recovery is under way. However, some operations will require a longer time before your digestive system works again, and you might be advised to stay in hospital until then. You might be told to avoid putting pressure on any wounds until they are fully healed, and you will normally be asked to rest in bed for a while after your operation until your muscles have recovered.
If you are interested in becoming a surgeon, you will need to choose a specialty. Some specialties have a high volume of emergency patients, such as colorectal surgery and vascular surgery, while other specialise in more routine work. In some cases, a specialist in one speciality will have to work closely with colleagues from other surgical and medical specialty areas, for example a plastic surgeon might be required to work with an urologist for some of their patients.