I've been reading about the various surgical outcomes and post-operative experiences here with great interest. I had a RALP (robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy) in February 2023. Close to 1 year later, I experienced an indirect inguinal hernia on my right side. After extensive research into the causes of inguinal hernia, my surgery seemed like the probable cause. As in the case of others who have posted here, my surgeon immediately went on the defensive, insisting that a connection wasn't possible. Notably, he had never mentioned an inguinal hernia as a possible postoperative complication. This is despite the fact that approximately 12% of men undergoing RALP surgery experience Inguinal hernias ( the number is even higher for open prostatectomy). I found that perplexing. It's not as if this isn't well-published, either. I found numerous large-scale studies in both American and European medical journals that came to the same conclusion. Now, over a year after that odd, shifting bulge was initially discovered, I am about one week into my post-hernia repair recovery. Fortunately, my surgeon was aware of the precautions required to work on someone with a history of RALP surgery, having repaired hernias on a few individuals just like myself in the past.
In the studies I came across, the reasons for an increased risk of inguinal hernia after RALP and open prostatectomy were: a history of smoking, chronic cough, low BMI (body mass index), and the skill of the surgeon. Although, there were possibly unknown factors as well. It was interesting to discover that some surgeons are now employing a modified surgical method related to the treatment of the spermatic cord. The vas deferens, a part of the spermatic cord, is often cut during the procedure, and retracting it can potentially pull the peritoneum (lining of the abdominal cavity) towards the inguinal canal, increasing the likelihood of an inguinal hernia. Who knew!? I can only hope that more surgeons look into this in the future. A surgery caused by another surgery is just one surgery too many! Something I'm sure we can all agree on!