Brian P. Jacob, David C. Chen, Bruce Ramshaw, Shirin Towfigh (eds.) - The SAGES Manual of Groin Pain-Springer International Publishing (2016)

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D.C. Chen and B.P. Jacob
or discomfort, but after I noticed it grew ever so slightly about a year
later, I pointed it out to my gynecologist in case it was a tumor. She
checked it out visibly and said, “I think it’s probably a hernia so eventually
you should go see a surgeon,” and she gave me some referrals. I
waited almost another year. Every once in a while after I danced it would
pop out slightly further.
My Preoperative Experience
Finally I decided to go see a surgeon. But instead of following the
gynecologist’s suggestions, I asked my internist for a name or names. I
wanted a female surgeon. My doctor gave me the name of a colleague,
Dr. A (who, I learned later, was also a trusted friend). Dr. A examined
me, ordered a scan, and reported to me shortly after that I indeed had a
femoral type hernia and that it eventually would have to be removed.
Because it had “infarcted” already, she said I would not be a candidate
for laparoscopic surgery (which she did not perform). Dr. A said eventually
it was possible that my hernia could incarcerate at any time, when I
could be traveling or away from home, and it was best to nip it in the
bud. It was left to me to decide if and when to do this open surgery, but
I should not wait too long. Mistake number one.
I decided to get a second opinion, as I still had no discomfort but just
the occasional tiny bulge. I got a second opinion from the suggestion of
my friend who was a prominent vascular surgeon. I again asked for a
female surgeon. My friend asked around and got the name of another
respected female general surgeon. I went to see Dr. B, who looked at
the imaging and agreed that it was a femoral hernia and that it eventually
should probably be removed, but that there wasn’t any great
urgency and I should do it within the year. Regarding technique, at
some point, Dr. B told me that if I wanted to pursue laparoscopic surgery,
a colleague, Dr. C, would be more experienced at that technique.
When I called back to Dr. A, this surgeon opined that I was not eligible
for a laparoscopic repair. My second opinion, Dr. B, did not push me
toward a consult with Dr. C, an experienced laparoscopic hernia surgeon.
Mistake number two.
I eventually decided to do the surgery over the summer when things
were quieter at work and made a date with Dr. B to do the surgery. My
internist thought I was making a mistake and told me if it were she, she
would do it with the original surgeon, Dr. A, at the outpatient clinic. I
was told this was better than having surgery at the university, which was