A hiatal hernia occurs when the upper portion of your stomach bulges through the muscle separating your diaphragm and your abdomen. A small hiatal hernia usually does not manifest symptoms, but a large one can cause your food and stomach acid to go back to your esophagus, leading to heartburn or chest pain.
When self-care measures and medications no longer work or if you have a very large hiatal hernia, a hiatal hernia repair may be recommended by our surgeon. This surgical procedure involves the pulling down of the stomach into the abdomen and making the opening of the diaphragm smaller or the reconstruction of an esophageal sphincter. A hiatal hernia repair may also be done in conjunction with weight-loss surgery, such as a gastric sleeve procedure.
A hiatal hernia repair procedure may be done using a single abdominal incision using laparoscopy. Laparoscopy is a minimally invasive procedure where our surgeon inserts a small camera and surgical tools through abdominal incisions. Our surgeon performs the hiatal hernia repair while viewing images from inside your body displayed on a video monitor.
