Inguinal Hernia - Schedule w/ PCP or Specialist

Oh makes sense.

I guess the PCP would need to refer me?

Perfect! This helped. I’ll get in touch with my insurance and PCP. If possible, I’ll go straight to the surgeon.

Are there recommendations in the New Orleans area for this type of surgery? Seems pretty routine, but just in case, are there doctors recommended?

What was the recovery like for him by the way?

How soon was he able to begin physical exercise again?

Excellent! Thank you for the recommendation.

This thread has been so succinctly helpful.

quote:

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Do I schedule an appointment with my primary care doctor first or can I go ahead and schedule the appointment with a general surgeon or gastroenterologist (whoever is appropriate) since I know surgery is the only solution?

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Gastroenterologists don't perform surgery nor offer a useful alternative to surgery. This would be a big waste of time if what you have is indeed an inguinal hernia.

If you feel confident that you know what you've got, you can call a general surgeon's office and ask to be seen there. They may not accept you without a referral, but there's a decent chance they will. If you're wrong, and what you've got isn't a surgical issue, they'll ship you back to primary care.

If you're young and healthy, it's probably fine to start at the surgeon, but if you have any health problems other than this, the surgeon may want your PCP to look you over before surgery, which often will require a visit to the PCP.

General Surgeon....and congrats on the future bowling ball sized scrotum. I had bilateral done.