A hernia
is one of the most common health problems found in adults, both men and women.
It happens when part of an organ or lump of tissues protrude through any of the
weak spots in the muscles or connective tissue of the abdominal or intestinal
pelvic region.
Over 90%
of the hernia repair surgeries in the United States involve hernia mesh. More
than one million hernia mesh surgeries
are performed every year in the U.S. But this popular medical device has been
linked with many hernia meshcomplications. Some of these have been life threatening as well.
Nevertheless, all the mesh complications has been linked with some form of
major difficulty and caused a considerable change in the lifestyle.
Why
need the meshes?
The
primary idea of the hernia mesh surgery is to strengthen the damaged or torn
tissues. The woven fibers of the mesh are made either from a sheet of synthetic
material or from animal tissues. These meshes are placed across the damaged
tissues which are attached with staples, stitches or glue.
The
primary reason for using hernia mesh is to reduce the risk of its relapse. But
even with the use of the mesh, there has been no guarantee that hernias will
not return after the repair surgery although it leads to fewer hernia
recurrences than when done with the traditional process. Patients should
discuss with their surgeon about the best alternatives for the repair to avoid hernia mesh complications.
Understanding
the complications
As said,
even though the meshes were called to be a safer alternative than the existing
procedure, it was reported to have plenty of issues associated with it. With
any sign of such complications, the patient should be taken in for medical
attention immediately. Generally, the complications need a revision surgery and
the following are most commonly reported side effects of mesh implant:
- · Relapse
of hernia: Do you know which the most
commonly reported problem of hernia operations is? It is the recurrence of
hernia. What causes it is wrongly performed surgical technique, migration of
the broken mesh particles or shrinkage of the mesh.
- · Inflammation: Polypropylene is most typically used for making the hernia repair meshes but it
has been known to cause inflammation. Although it helps in promoting tissue
growth, most of the time, the inflammation persists for a long time leading to infections. Hernia mesh
inflammation can make everyday life unnecessarily painful.
- · Difficulty
in healing: A defected hernia mesh can prevent healing at the operated site, which
is unfortunately one of the most overlooked hernia mesh complications. It eventually forms a seroma that is a build-up fluid which prevents the region from
healing.
- · Mesh
rejection: Some bodies might reject the mesh as a foreign object and its immune
system might not let it accept in to stay inside the body. This also causes
complications.
- · Mesh
adhesion: The FDA defined the adhesions as “scar-like tissue that sticks tissues
together.” It can only be understood with the sign of chronic pain. But it can
sometimes even lead to highlycomplicated conditions by obstructing the bowels.
- · Bowel
perforation: When a defective hernia mesh punctures into the bowel, perforate other
organs in the abdomen, it can lead to plenty of complications. Being one of the
major mesh complications it lets the fecal matter pass into the abdominal
cavity causing peritonitis. It can even lead to sepsis which is a fatal blood
infection.
Patients
who suffered from the above mentioned complications including mesh failure,
bacterial infection, bowel perforation, bowel obstructions and other sorts of
pain and suffering might be entitled to compensation. There are firms which
have experienced personal attorneys to help the victims in filing these complex
medical cases and securing settlements.
