Soreness and pain throughout the abdomen is normal after surgery. You may feel pain in spots further away from the hernia than you expected – this is due to the tacks that hold the mesh in place all the way around the edge of the mesh. This is normal and will get better with time. Pain will be worse with movement, changing positions from laying to seated to standing. This is normal and will go away over time.
Additionally, pain can extend into the shoulders – this pain is due to a small remaining amount of gas within your abdominal cavity. This gas was used to inflate your abdomen in order to do the surgery. While we try to vent all of this gas out at the end of the surgery it is impossible to get all of it out. This small amount of gas causes some irritation of the lining of the abdominal cavity and our brain sometimes translates this to pain in the shoulder. The gas dissipates on its own over 24-48 hours and nothing needs to be done. It will get better!
Most of our patients take only Tylenol and ibuprofen for pain management after surgery. If you have been advised in the past not to take one of these medications, please follow those instructions. Applying ice to the surgery site for 20 minutes at a time can also be helpful.
We recommend taking the following (if allowed) every 6 hours for the first few days after surgery as needed:
If you are experiencing significant pain that is preventing you from going on a walk or falling asleep, please call the office to discuss prescription pain medications. Opioid pain medications like oxycodone, will cause constipation, so we recommend following the instructions below for constipation.