Helios Mariahilf Hospital Hamburg: "I got my life back" - Hernia surgeon operates in Paraguay
A good quarter of all men and 3% of all women worldwide suffer from a hernia or abdominal wall hernia in the course of their lives. These so-called hernias almost always require surgery. But what is a matter of course in Germany is denied to many people in other parts of the world - for example because operations are unaffordable or there is a lack of clinics or trained surgeons. Dr. med. Wolfgang Reinpold, Chief Physician at the Hamburg Hernia Centre and the Department of Hernia Surgery at the Helios Mariahilf Hospital in Hamburg-Harburg, wants to help: This is the 16th time that the internationally renowned expert has embarked on a "hernia mission" at the end of 2023. In Paraguay, he operated on 55 indigent patients free of charge and trained local surgeons.
Derlis Hernandez from Santa Rosa de Aguaray and his family and six children make a living from farming. Actually: the 53-year-old has been unable to work for the last two years due to a hernia, leaving the family in great economic hardship. What's more: Hernandezaus was in severe pain and his hernia was already the size of a handball. "When we examined him, the hernia was already trapped - an emergency that had to be operated on immediately," emphasizes Dr. Reinpold, who treated the father of the family as part of his latest humanitarian hernia mission.
Incarcerated hernia: danger to life if left untreated
Background: Inguinal and abdominal wall hernias are abnormal holes in the abdominal wall into which intestines can slide. There is always a risk of life-threatening intestinal incarceration, which can usually only be repaired by immediate emergency surgery. It becomes problematic if those affected do not have access to adequate healthcare and such a hernia is not operated on professionally in good time.
Dr. Reinpold knows numerous dramatic examples from a total of 16 hernia missions to Africa, Latin America and China. In 2023, he was once again drawn to Paraguay - one of the poorest countries in South America. Although there is a state healthcare system here, there is a lack of clinics and doctors in the field of hernia surgery, especially in remote rural regions. In addition, patients have to pay for many medical products out of their own pockets. Dr. Reinpold: "The indispensable hernia meshes cost around 100 US dollars in Paraguay - that is unaffordable for the majority of the rural population."
As a result, many sufferers live for years with untreated fractures, which can become very large over time and cause severe discomfort. Heavy physical work is often no longer possible, threatening to further impoverish entire families.
Hernia Mission 2023: 4 days, 55 patients, 78 hernias
Derlis Hernandez's story is unfortunately not an isolated case. In 2023, Dr. Reinpold and Paraguayan hernia specialist Prof. Dr. Osmar Cuenca Torres operated on 55 destitute people for a total of 78 hernias within four days. Most of them came from the rural department of San Pedro in the north, one of the poorest regions in the country. Like Derlis Hernandez, many patients were no longer able to work due to the size of their hernia and the discomfort they had experienced before the operation. In 15 cases, the hernia was incarcerated; in three patients, the incarcerated intestine was already impaired. Dr. Reinpold reports: "Fortunately, we were able to free and save the bowel in time in all cases. It was not necessary to remove the bowel in any of them."
Derlis Hernandez can work again today. "The hernia operation gave me my life back," he says looking back. The other patients have also recovered well. "There were no significant post-operative complications. The aftercare was professionally organized and ensured by Prof. Cuenca and his team," says Dr Reinpold happily.
Sustainable help: recognition from the Minister of Health
Important: The project focuses on sustainable aid. As part of the 55 operations, young local surgeons and surgical nursing staff were therefore trained in modern inguinal and abdominal wall surgery techniques, including MILOS surgery. In addition, a one-day workshop was held on Lichtenstein surgery - currently the most important open inguinal hernia operation technique worldwide.
This commitment was also recognized by the Paraguayan government: Health Minister Maria Teresa Barán Wasilchuk visited Reinpold and the team at the military hospital in Asunción and thanked them personally.
Dr. Reinpold thanks donors
Dr. Reinpold himself is also grateful for a successful hernia mission. His comprehensive help would not have been possible without the support of numerous private individuals and companies. "We were able to finance the necessary medical products such as surgical instruments, sutures and bandages as well as medication from donations from Hamburg and the surrounding area." A large proportion came from Wilhelmsburg, where Dr. Reinpold worked until 2021. The hernia meshes were donated by the German companies GFE Dynamesh (Aachen) and PFM (Cologne).
As with all previous hernia missions, Dr. Reinpold also took leave in this case and paid his own travel expenses. The mission took place under the auspices of the US aid organization Hernia Repair for the Underserved (HRFU), of which Reinpold is a board member.
Read more:
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About Helios Mariahilf Hospital Hamburg
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About Dr. med. Wolfgang Reinpold
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Interview with Dr. med. Wolfgang Reinpold
