Inguinal Hernial Institute Dr. Duc Vuong is introducing a new technique for inguinal hernia repair to Mainland Medical Center. The technique employs a protocol combining a revolutionary new synthetic mesh product and a postoperative pain pump. This protocol boasts a remarkably low failure rate, straightforward placement by the surgeon, and improved postoperative pain control for the patient.
The new mesh product called PHS is made by Ethicon. Its innovative design incorporates a traditional tension-free repair with both the plug technique and intraperitoneal repair. Imagine your body as a barrel filled with water and your hernia as a hole in the barrel.
In order to repair it, you could put a patch over the hole on the outside of the barrel (traditional tension-free repair), but the pressure of the water might cause the patch to come off. You could also plug the hole with a stopper (plug technique), but the plug could pop out or shift. You could also put the patch on the inside of the barrel (intraperitoneal repair) but placement of such a patch would be difficult.
The PHS combines all three repair techniques by creating a 3 dimensional mesh that has an onlay, a plug, and an underlay component. With this repair technique, the patient on average has less pain, a lower recurrence rate, and a faster return to normal activity.
Dr. Vuong combines the PHS technique with the On-Q Pain Pump, created by I-Flow. The On-Q Pain Pump delivers local anesthesia (numbing medicine) directly to the surgical site via a small tube. This improves postoperative pain control by targeting the surgical area directly and thereby decreases narcotic pain pill use by patients.
In addition I-Flow provides a 1-800 number that connects the patient directly with a nurse to answer any questions the patient might have regarding the device. The nurse can contact the surgeon directly if it appears there is a problem with the surgery.
Dr. Vuong realized that these two products would work well together to improve both surgical and patient results. This protocol is offered only by Dr. Vuong at the Inguinal Hernia Institute and only at Mainland Medical Center.
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