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September 21st, 2023 - I came across your website & am interested in finding out if you could help me. I had pelvic mesh surgery for stress urinary incontinence in 2009. I immediately developed a groin/abdominal pain pulling on left quadrant. Dr waited a yr but then went in and clipped the left side to release the mesh which rendered it useless & caused me more pain. I had another surgery to repair a couple yrs later because mesh was protruding through tissue. I've had more & more issues & worsening pain for 14 yrs now. I stopped going to drs because they said it couldn't be the mesh but I didn't have this pain before that surgery & it's the exact same area. Now it's abdominal & lower back pain as well.
You have my sympathy for your pain and long series of disappointments in getting properly diagnosed and treated. Most mesh pain patient know well that the cause of their pain is the mesh but they get gaslighted by their doctors who say it cannot possibly be the mesh. I could write a book on how and why this happens but suffice it to say IT IS THE MESH. The pioneer in the diagnosis and treatment of women with mesh pain, now retired, was Dr. Slomo Raz at the UCLA department of Urology. He is no longer there but doctors he trained are. I was trained there but that was long before mesh was recognized as a cause of chronic pain. Mesh pain is often complicated with Central Pain Sensitization and A.S.I.A. syndrome. Central pain sensitization causes great confusion in doctors because the pain distribution is widened and does not correspond with peripheral nervous system anatomy. I suggest you go to to the UCLA Department of Urology. Good luck.
September 18th, 2023 - Dr. Peterson operated on me for two inguinal hernias a couple of years ago. They are doing very well.
I now believe that I have an umbilical hernia that I need to get fixed. I am disappointed that Dr. Peterson is retired. Any suggestions where I can go to get it repaired?
Please see the list of surgeons. List of surgeons
September 18th, 2023 - I am contacting you to get help with my son. In 2015, my son had a right inguinal hernia repair with mesh placement. Since that time, his health has progressively declined. He is 31 years old and his quality of life is terrible. Prior to surgery, he was a healthy male. He has seen multiple providers and nobody will even consider mesh removal and we are told his case is too complicated. He recently had had a ilioinguinal nerve block that was not successful and he continues to have 8-10/10 pain on a 10-point pain scale with one being the least pain and 10 being the worst. I am also in healthcare and have exhausted every possible option that I can think of. I received your name from a colleague as one of her patients seen you and you were able to get her life back. We need help please.
Your son has a good chance of being cured of his pain with hernia mesh removal. Most surgeons do not even consider it because they think it is too dangerous and they do not understand the cause of the pain. On my List of Surgeons are surgeons who do it like I do and get good results. See: List of surgeons He also may also have A.S.I.A. syndrome: A.S.I.A syndrome
Hi Dr. Petersen,
Hoping you can help me.
Have you ever removed mesh from someone who has idiopathic Mast Cell Activation Syndrome? Have you ever had a patient with MCAS or a patient has MCAS triggered by mesh implantation? I was recently diagnosed with MCAS after many years of having symptoms but not being able to get a diagnosis. believe my MCAS was triggered by having hernia mesh put in. My symptoms started immediately after surgery and my life has never been the same. I’ve wanted to get the mesh taken out since the day after it went in but I’m not sure that I’d be a good candidate. I’m 38 years old, 160lbs, female, non smoker, don’t drink, healthy other than MCAS and asthma. My hernia surgery was in Jan 2017.
Hoping you can advise.
Many thanks,
I would almost certainly remove your mesh. I only have partial information that I would need to give precise opinion. Go to my consultation page and complete the Medical history form and return to me.
Mesh is an adjuvant which stimulates our immune system. This can have undesirable side effects. The most common example of this is the A.S.I.A. syndrome which I see in 70% of patients who come to me for hernia mesh removal. MCAS may be considered part of this syndrome. I have not removed mesh from a patient with the specific diagnosis of idiopathic MCAS. I would not call your condition idiopathic which means "of unknown cause". Yours is caused by your mesh. Your diagnosis would not be a cause or concern for me taking you to surgery. I have done over 500 mesh explant surgeries. I have not done tests for mast cell activation products. Chances are I would have seen a few patients with positive markers. I have had no patients develop mast cell storm after surgery.
Hi,
I have had hernia mesh removed 2 years ago. I have been pain free for months at a time but I do have pain flares that are debilitating. What can I do to get rid of these pain flares?
Thank-you!
Pain flares are very common for hernia mesh removal patients who have had mesh removal and experienced periods of complete relief from pain. These flares are typically incited by some particular physical activity or manipulation of the wound by massage or physical therapy. At this time we do not have definitive treatment for flares other than avoiding inciting activities. Typically these flares only last days, weeks or months, up to a year. The pain is not coming from where you feel it. It is being generated in your central nervous system and your brain is telling you it is coming from where your mesh was. Central Pain Sensitization is the cause. Surgery is worthless unless you have a hernia recurrence that needs to be fixed. Nerve removal does not help. Medications are worthless and commonly lead to addiction.