Umb hernia HURTS. What to do?

[Bill Hanna]

Hi,

I must depend on the VA for medical. I have developed a
umbilical hernia and they say no surgery because I am high
risk due to bad heart, high dose prednisone, and over weight
(6'2" 240lbs) They say... no big deal.. just live with it
until/unless it becomes acute and then they will operate on
an emergency basis.

The problem is... the damn thing is a big deal.. it hurts
most of the time. At least once a week my intestine becomes
trapped so much I must push VERY hard to return. Much of the
rest of the time my intestine protrudes enough to cause
cramps unless I hold it in.

They gave me a sort of big ACE bandage, but it folds over
and is a marginal help at best.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can get them to
take this thing seriously? Or... should I get some kind of
corset, etc?

--
Bill

Honor the soldier. Not the war.

[Howard McCollis]

"Bill Hanna" <Billhanna@boggletech.com> wrote in message
news:nvibe0h455v9p1jup7qtj2eet88fp31fip@4ax.com...
> Hi,
>
> I must depend on the VA for medical. I have developed a
> umbilical hernia and they say no surgery because I am high
> risk due to bad heart, high dose prednisone, and over
> weight (6'2" 240lbs) They say... no big deal.. just live
> with it until/unless it becomes acute and then they will
> operate on an emergency basis.
>
> The problem is... the damn thing is a big deal.. it hurts
> most of the time. At least once a week my intestine
> becomes trapped so much I must push VERY hard to return.
> Much of the rest of the time my intestine protrudes enough
> to cause cramps unless I hold it in.
>
> They gave me a sort of big ACE bandage, but it folds over
> and is a marginal help at best.
>
> Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can get them
> to take this thing seriously? Or... should I get some kind
> of corset, etc?
>

You are being seriously under-treated for your umbilical
hernia. Although it's not the most common occurence with
umbilical hernia, intestinal strangulation is possible and
dangerous enough that the hernia should be fixed, even if
one were to ignore the pain and discomfort it is causing
you. In many cases, such a hernia can be fixed under local
anesthesia, and if not, laparoscopic repair can also be
done. If the hernia is large, it may be incarcerated
intestine that represents the lump you are feeling/reducing
(that's dangerous), but usually it's more common that it's
incarcerated pre-peritoneal fat - painful, but not
necessarily dangerous.

No idea how to get the VA system to treat you
appropriately. They are a land unto themselves and in many
cases operate according to principles that are not
necessarily in sync with the rest of the medical world.
There must be some sort of internal review or grievance
process, and persistance/insistance on your part is likely
going to be the key.

HMc