Hernia surgery
We provide a private specialist hernia repair surgery service for all types of hernias most often in the groin and abdomen. This included inguinal and femoral hernias, umbilical hernias, incisional hernias following a previous surgery and epigastric hernias.
Your consultant may recommend surgery if your hernia is causing discomfort or is a risk to your general health.
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What is it for?
Groin and abdominal hernias
Treatment overview
As a centre of excellence, we offer hernia repair surgery for these types of hernias:
- Inguinal and femoral hernias in the groin area
- Umbilical hernias in the abdomen
- Incisional hernias as a result of previous surgery
- Epigastric hernias between the belly and breastbone
Your consultant may recommend surgery if your hernia is causing discomfort or is a risk to your general health.
Contact us today to start your treatment journey and get back to living the life you love.
Why choose The London Clinic
Excellence in one place
The London Clinic, in collaboration with Northwestern Medicine, operate as teams of experts with world-class resources, dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of care. Supported by the latest treatments, expert guidance, and a comfortable recovery environment in our patient rooms, you'll have everything you need to regain your best health.
Personal care, every time
Exceptional patient care is a way of life for us. We’ll be with you every step of the way, tailoring your care to your specific needs, including healthy and delicious meals designed to support your recovery. We keep our staff-to-patient ratio low, so our nurses, clinicians, therapists, and support teams can offer a personalised, quality experience.
Effortlessly simple
We work together as one to guide you through every step of your patient experience. From explaining your personal treatment plan to ensuring all details are taken care of, we make the process stress-free, so you can focus on your health. Whether it’s your first consultation or follow-up care, our teams are here to provide seamless support and the peace of mind you deserve.
What's included in your package?
Choosing The London Clinic means your treatment plan will be laid out for you, with all the details taken care of so you can focus on you.
Your treatment package will include:
- Enhanced pre-admission assessment
- Your treatment with our complete care team at your fingertips
- Personalised aftercare and follow-up
We want you to be in control of your health. That’s why we also offer optional services such as comprehensive recovery packages and extra touches for you to choose from during your stay with us. To help you manage the cost, we also offer a 0% finance option, allowing you to spread the payments for your treatment over 12 months with no added interest. Learn more about our finance options here.
How to pay
- You can use private medical insurance (PMI) to access this treatment. We work with all major PMI providers in the UK and many internationally
- You can pay for yourself (self-pay)
- If you’re paying for yourself, we have 0% finance options available with Chrysalis. Find out more here.
FAQs
Hernia surgery repairs weak spots or holes in the muscle wall where a hernia has formed. A hernia is a lump of tissue from another part of the body, such as fat or intestine, which has started to poke through the hole or weak spot.
A hernia can be present from birth or develops because of wear-and-tear due to activities like heavy lifting, straining or bouts of coughing.
Conditions such as constipation and lung disorders can make you more susceptible to hernias, as can pregnancy, obesity and general aging.
Hernia repair surgery puts tissue back into the correct position and strengthens the muscle wall to relieve pain and discomfort.
At The London Clinic our surgeons perform hernia operations using keyhole surgery (laparoscopic), or open surgery under general or local anaesthetic.
Keyhole surgery involves making tiny incisions in the muscle wall so that miniaturised surgical equipment can be inserted into the body.
A thin light tube and a camera (laparoscope) is placed through one of these incisions so the surgeon can see inside your abdomen or groin.
The miniaturised instruments are placed through the other incisions so the surgeon can repair the hernia.
The weak spot or hole is then closed using dissolvable stitches and a prosthetic mesh applied, which helps the hernia repair more quickly.
An incision larger than 2 cm is normal for open surgery. It allows your surgeon to push the protruding tissue back into your abdomen or groin.
A mesh to strengthen any weakness in the muscle wall may be applied. The hole will usually be stitched using dissolvable stitches and a pressure dressing applied.
You’ll stay with us for a few hours after surgery to make sure you’re OK, then you’ll be free to go home. But if you have other medical conditions you may need to stay overnight.
Hernia repair surgery puts tissue back into the correct position and strengthens the muscle wall to relieve pain and discomfort.
Some hernias may not require immediate surgery and others like a strangulated hernia can be life threatening.
At The London Clinic, we offer the totally extraperitoneal (TEP) technique, which is a new less invasive method of keyhole surgery for inguinal hernias.
Keyhole surgery including TEP usually provides a faster recovery with fewer complications and minimal scarring.
Open surgery is normally used to treat umbilical hernias but can also be used for repairing inguinal, femoral and epigastric hernias.
Your surgeon will have an open conversation with you about the most beneficial hernia surgery technique to suit you and your health needs.
How long it takes to recover from hernia surgery depends on how fit and healthy you are before surgery.
Most people are able to return to work and do normal day-to-day activities after a week or two, but it usually takes four to six weeks for your body to properly recover from the operation.
You should avoid heavy lifting for up to six weeks and avoid driving for about two weeks.
If you have constipation after surgery your care team will provide you with laxatives or may suggest dietary changes before your surgery, as straining to open your bowels can slow down your recovery.
One of our highly trained physiotherapists will give you a number of specific exercises to help you heal and recover more quickly.
Your care team will be on hand to help and if there’s anything you’re worried about you can contact them at any time.
Hernia repair surgery is a routine operation with relatively few risks.
In a small number of cases side effects can develop or the surgery may not work.
Inguinal or femoral hernia surgery to the groin or scrotum carries a slight risk of:
- Swelling or bruising of the testicles or base of the penis
- Numbness in the groin
- Temporary weakness in the leg
- Difficulty passing urine
- Damage to the vas deferens (the tube that carries sperm to the testicles).
- Injury to the femoral vein Side effects that can develop as a result of epigastric or umbilical hernia surgery include:
- Infection and bleeding
- Rupture of the wound
- Belly button may look different
- Hernia may return
Most people make a full recovery from hernia repair surgery within 6 weeks and return to normal activities such as work and driving within 2 weeks.
Your consultant and care team will be on hand to advise you if you have any questions.