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Have a friend who's been quoted a cost of $3,000 for her 20% payment for this Op at Lake Norman .
Seemed steep to me and when I googled it seems like the average cost is around $8000.
Any thoughts?
I just had my gall bladder removed in March at Lake Norman and it was $20,000! Out patient and I was there around three hours.
I had heard that LNMC were expensive-would this have something to do with the fact that they're not a non-profit organisation like CHS and Novant?
This is OP surgery too. Dread to think what IP surgery costs although I guess most of the bill will be for an anesthesiologist and surgeon.
She went for her pre-op yesterday and I was amazed when she told me that the anesthesiologist will tell her on the day of the op whether he is giving a full general anesthetic or just a nerve block with sedation.
Also a little concerned that her PCP referred her for the procedure when the hernia isn't bothering her, BUT she has recently been diagnosed with hypertension (severe- 210/100- felt unwell , went to ER at LNMC who gave her intravenous blood pressure lowering treatment and sent her home alone 3 hrs later!) that isn't responding so far to combination therapy which was causing dreadful body cramps. PCP only increased the dose of the meds a week ago as BP isn't budging.
I wouldn't have thought that any anesthesiologist would want to give a GA to someone with a BP like this, and it will also increase surgical bleeding during the procedure, which is planned as keyhole.
Worst case scenario is that they start with a nerve block and lap surgery and then have to proceed to GA with open surgery when she bleeds.
She's also moderately obese.
I did suggest that maybe she should delay the procedure until her BP is at least somewhere like normal.
Good lord. These days they should only need to give you a local groin anesthetic along with some "I don't give a f-u-c-k" juice. The juice will make you so happy you will want to have more operations. I had this operation twice, on both sides. The first was in the 1980s when it was much more barbaric like you described above. They did the complete knock out, take you to the edge of death type of anesthetic using sodium penethol. It took me days just to get over having that stuff in my system. In comparison I had the second one done as I first described in the late nineties and I was so happy with the jungle juice they gave me, that I wanted to do it again. Recovery was very easy compared to the 1980s version.
My recommendation, leave the backwoods and head to Charlotte. Go to the Charlotte hernia clinic and have it done in the CMC outpatient center. They will dope you up as soon as you strip down. (fine procedure) iMO, you want a male doctor for this. I'm a believer that if you don't have the bits yourself, then you should not be cutting on it. Obese female doctors shouldn't be messing around a man's private area with a scalpel, one of the sharpest items in the modern world. This might sound prejudiced or something, but are some things that just are not subject to equal rights.
Oh and forget about trying to recover in the bed. You won't like it as you can't lay flat. Fix up a place on the couch or recliner with the remote nearby and plan to camp out there for the next week.
Last edited by yantosh22; 08-10-2011 at 10:21 AM..
LOL Yantosh, the OP made it pretty clear the patient was a woman! My two cents? Encourage her to lose wieght. Lots of it. That will fix the BP and possibly the hernia.
Opps. I miss read it. I didn't think women could get this kind of hernia since they don't usually have the cojones which can lead to it. (most of them anyway) Well.... advice for others who might stumble across this topic.
[quote=Whatsthenews;20395165]I had heard that LNMC were expensive-would this have something to do with the fact that they're not a non-profit organisation like CHS and Novant?
This is OP surgery too. Dread to think what IP surgery costs although I guess most of the bill will be for an anesthesiologist and surgeon.
She went for her pre-op yesterday and I was amazed when she told me that the anesthesiologist will tell her on the day of the op whether he is giving a full general anesthetic or just a nerve block with sedation.
Also a little concerned that her PCP referred her for the procedure when the hernia isn't bothering her, BUT she has recently been diagnosed with hypertension (severe- 210/100- felt unwell , went to ER at LNMC who gave her intravenous blood pressure lowering treatment and sent her home alone 3 hrs later!) that isn't responding so far to combination therapy which was causing dreadful body cramps. PCP only increased the dose of the meds a week ago as BP isn't budging.
I wouldn't have thought that any anesthesiologist would want to give a GA to someone with a BP like this, and it will also increase surgical bleeding during the procedure, which is planned as keyhole.
Worst case scenario is that they start with a nerve block and lap surgery and then have to proceed to GA with open surgery when she bleeds.
She's also moderately obese.
I did suggest that maybe she should delay the procedure until her BP is at least somewhere like normal.[/quo
This just doesn't sound good at all. I would be looking for a second opinion.Some of the area doctors also have privlidges at Presbyterian in Huntersville. I would see what the cost there would be.
I just had surgery yesterday. I used Charlotte Surgical Specialists and can't say enough good things about the way I was treated and the whole experience. Second Opinions are something everyone should have when they're talking about cutting you open.
Opps. I miss read it. I didn't think women could get this kind of hernia since they don't usually have the cojones which can lead to it. (most of them anyway) Well.... advice for others who might stumble across this topic.
The type of surgery you refer to is inguinal hernia repair. There are other areas that can herniate, including the umbilicus (belly button). The biggest risk with (any) hernia is incarceration (where blood supply is cut off to the herniated area, and torsion (where the herniated area twists, also cutting off circulation). These can lead to necrosis of the tissue, which can lead to sepsis and death.
OP, I would tend to agree that someone with uncontrolled hypertension should not receive general anesthesia. In this litigious society, I am sure the anesthesiologist will do all in his power to reduce the risk of being sued, to include using a nerve block. I'd also concur that weight loss will certainly help reduce your friend's hypertension. I am, however, on the fence about whether weight loss will help with the hernia- skinny people get hernias too. Best of luck!
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