Diastsis Recti vs hernia

[Settledownnow]

I saw a bariatric surgeon today regarding my "hernia" and was told I did not have a hernia but diastasis recti. She said the CT scan does not show a hernia. She did not exam me. Two other doctors examined me previously and said I had a hernia. She is the hernia expert of the group (she said). I am at a loss. Not having a hernia is great news, but do I trust her opinion? I am in pain when I get up and down and she said pain can also be associated with diastasis recti. She also told me any type of exercise is fine including listing weights. Her advice was to consult with a plastic surgeon to make future plans (and to save money) for abdominoplasty once I hit my weight loss goal. Fast forward -- what happens if I get a TT and a hernia is found? I might need to get a tie-breaker opinion on this from another doctor for peace of mind.

 

[DianaCox]

I would get another opinion - and a CT scan or MRI. There is of course a difference - the hernia is a medical issue, and DR usually isn't (unless you have DR AND an umbilical hernia - you may be able to get the DR fixed at the same time, in order to avoid having to have mesh to fix the umbilical hernia (if you can imagine, I manages the appointments and insurance submission (wrote drafts for the PS and general surgeon) and got my husband an insurance paid abdominoplasty, including a bit of a mons lift, to fix his umbilical hernia and congenital DR - and I haven't had my own abdominoplasty (yet)).

 

[Larra]

CT scans are great, but no test is perfect. Not every hernia will show up on a CT scan, so the fact that none was seen does not completely rule out a hernia. I am surprised (and frankly appalled) that any surgeon would claim to differentiate between a true hernia and a diastasis without bothering to examine you.
It's true that internists and other non-surgeons do often mistake a DR for a hernia, but a surgeon would be able to tell the difference with a simple physical exam. I would get another opinion with another general surgeon (if you haven't seen a surgeon about this already) and make sure they actually examine you.

 

[Settledownnow]

CT scans are great, but no test is perfect. Not every hernia will show up on a CT scan, so the fact that none was seen does not completely rule out a hernia. I am surprised (and frankly appalled) that any surgeon would claim to differentiate between a true hernia and a diastasis without bothering to examine you.
It's true that internists and other non-surgeons do often mistake a DR for a hernia, but a surgeon would be able to tell the difference with a simple physical exam. I would get another opinion with another general surgeon (if you haven't seen a surgeon about this already) and make sure they actually examine you.

In addition, according to Dr. Google you can make the DR worse with certain types of exercise. This is contrary to her advice that any exercise including using weights and weight machines were fine.

 

[Munchkin]

I have DR and a hernia. I can tell you it will get worse over time with just normal activity.