MUSCHAWECK SPORTS HERNIA REPAIR - ONE YEAR LATER
An update on my condition after having surgery
with Dr. UM.
It still hurts! There is something not right!
Several months into my recovery, which seemed to be
going well, I started to get some minor pressure
around the surgical area when sneezing or anything
that would increase my abdominal pressure. Month by
month this got worse. Now, anytime I lift my leg,
whether it is to go up stairs, tie my shoes, get in
and out of a car, exercise...anything...I feel a
lump or a bulge being pushed up in and around the
surgical site. When I reported this to Dr. UM, the
only explanation I got was that it was a ghost nerve
sensation because of the nerve being compressed
prior to surgery. I had a hard time believing that
so I ran it by my PCP and even he said that sounds
'iffy'. As the months progressed, more pains and
problems showed up. Now, if I bring my knees
together which subsequently collapses the center of
the groin area, I can feel something squishy and
loose moving around. It is a feeling that makes you
worry because you have this gut-feeling that
something is not right. I also get alot of burning
and stinging when I sit down and the weight of your
upper body naturally pushes downward to the center
of your body - on the pelvis and groin area. When I
laugh and clear my throat, I can feel this pulsing
and outwardly pushing sensation where the
superficial inguinal ring is.
Although I've communicated all of this with Dr. UM
on several occasions, her intent with all the
communiques is to tell me that there is nothing
wrong and that nothing can undo her surgical
procedure. Strangely enough, that is NOT the answer
I got when I called the famed Shouldice Hospital
and another pure-tissue repair hernia specialist.
Both said without hesitation that any pure-tissue
repair has the potential to fail or falter, even
theirs - referring to Shouldice, which is the
gold-standard when it comes to hernia repairs. I
further asked about cortisone injections to calm
the nerves and those places were quick to say,
"Nooo, don't do that!" They explained that
cortisone dissolves scar tissue and that is the
last thing you want with a hernia repair. The scar
tissue is what is binding the surgical site
together and preventing it from breaking open
again. When I questioned about its value and use in
breaking up adhesions or scar tissue that could be
entrapping nerves, again I got a big 'NO!' They
both said that there is no way to direct the liquid
once it leaves the syringe tip to a specific area
to only break up some excessive scar tissue and
leave the rest of it alone to continue doing its
job as the binder for the incised tissue.
I did get an invite from Dr. UM to return to Munich
for some testing and to see some specialists for
the pain, since she continues to believe that
nothing can go wrong with her procedure. She did
mention that if a repeat surgery would be
necessary, which she always says is highly unlikely,
that I would already be there. (Didn't she
have to re-operate on some athletes that had her
procedure because they continued to have pain
afterward? I thought I read that somewhere) Yes,
of course I will already be there, but who is
paying for all this?!?!? Excuse me for sounding
like this, but I, like most others who have gone to
Germany, had to pay for everything out-of-pocket. I
used most of my savings the first time around to go
to Germany because I thought I was getting 'the
best'. Who is going to pay for all these tests and
specialists if I return to Munich, not to mention
another surgery...and airfare...and hotel
costs...geeez!
I can respect the fact that she has helped many
people and apparently they are doing fine as you
hardly see them here once they are healed; but over
the past months I have gotten in contact with more
than a dozen people, mainly from this forum, who
ARE having problems following her procedure. I'm
sure there are more out there, I just don't know
who they are. Again, I can respect that they may
view her as a 'prayer from above', but you also
need to afford some respect to those that are not
healed and voice their opinions and tell about how
their recovery has gone.
At this point, I feel 'kicked to the curb'. She has
done her procedure, in her eyes the surgery that
day was a success, so she is done with me. In my
eyes, the surgery was NOT a success as I am still
having pain and problems - oh, and for those that
may be wondering, yes, I did do physical therapy
and I even waited a whole month before doing PT to
make sure that things were primarily healed and
sealed internally before starting any rehab
program. So, it can't be said that I didn't wait
long enough before starting PT. Actually, I am
guessing that this is an arrogantly common practice
with surgeons. I have read similar horror stories
here and at other forums where other SH surgeons
operate on you and when you call them to report
that you are still in pain, you automatically get,
'Hey, I operated on you and things went smoothly in
the OR.'
I did months of research - reading this thread,
reading other forums, even emailing many here to
ask questions - before choosing her. In hindsight,
if I had to do all over again, I probably would
have chosen a US-based sports hernia specialist. At
least that way I would have had better access to
seeing him for follow-up care. Although many sports
professionals may have no problem going to Germany
whenever problems arise, they also have much deeper
pockets than regular people, not to mention the
financial resources of the organization they play
for.
My suggestion - anticipate post-operative
complications when planning to travel outside of the
country for surgical care. Although you hope for
the best, you often overlook the prospect that
you'll be one of the unfortunate guys that has the
problems - I know I did. Have even more money in
reserves if you have to return to that doctor for
her to address the problems you are experiencing.
My recommendation - find a doctor stateside that
does SH surgery. There were many mentioned in this
awesome thread, plus I have learned of 3 others
that apparently have been 'training' with Dr. UM
and know how to perform her 'minimal repair'
technique. (which, by the way, is the technique she
used on me, even though I requested her to do the
Shouldice technique. She assured me that the
Shouldice technique was overkill and that her
technique would yield the best results. I'm now
thinking that the Shouldice would have given me a
stronger repair since it is a quadruple layer
technique to compensate for intra-abdominal wall
pressure)
I know price drives many people to see her, but do
choose wisely when making the decision as to who is
going to cut into you. You are the one that has to
live with the outcome, not the surgeon.
My thoughts are with those that are still suffering
after surgery and best of luck to those considering
SH surgery.