'lower belly fullness'

Umbilical hernia surgery is a small, quick operation to push the bulge back into place and to strengthen the abdominal wall. In most cases, the person receiving surgery will be able to go home on the same day. Surgery involves making an incision at the base of the belly button and pushing either the fatty lump or bowel back into the abdomen. In open surgery, our surgeon will open the site and repair the hernia by using mesh and stitching the muscle together. In laparoscopic surgery or keyhole, surgery, mesh and sutures will be passed through small incisions. Muscle layers are stitched over the weak area in the abdomen wall, fortifying it. Dissolvable stitches or special glue are used to close the wound. The surgeon will sometimes apply a pressure dressing on the hernia, which remains in place for 4 to 5 days. An umbilical hernia operation usually takes about 20 to 30 minutes.

Ureteroscopy (URS) is a form of minimally invasive surgery using a small telescope that is passed through the urethra and into the ureter to remove a stone. Often the stone requires fragmentation with a laser which then allows the smaller fragments to removed with a grasping device. Only about 10-15% or urethral stones require surgical intervention. URS is approximately 95% successful in removing stones in the lower ureter and about 85-90% successful in treating and removing stones in the upper ureter and kidney.

If you have an anal fissure that hasn’t healed with self-help measures and medical treatments, we may suggest you a procedure to treat it. An anal fissure is a small tear or ulcer (open sore) in your skin around the opening of your anus. There are several different types of procedures available, including injections with botulinum toxin, removal of the fissure (excision or fissurectomy) and sphincterotomy. We may suggest you have a procedure called a fissurectomy alongside Botox injections. This involves cutting away the damaged skin from around your anal fissure, along with any ‘sentinel’ skin tags (lumps of skin associated with the fissure).