Hernia surgery at Spire Sussex Hospital

At Spire Sussex, we provide high-quality treatments and services and are extremely proud to be rated as Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for our private hospital care.

We offer fast access to treatment for inguinal hernias if they’re causing you pain or complications. You have a choice of expert consultants who can perform the procedure and offer you a treatment and recovery plan that’s personalised to your needs.

Getting here

We're situated near Hastings, the nearest railway stations are Hastings Town and Battle, both approximately three miles away, or 10 minutes by car. We have free on-site parking for you and your visitors.

Your consultation

You’ll meet your chosen consultant in one of our six private consultation rooms. They’ll discuss:

• Your symptoms and medical history
• How inguinal hernia surgery works
• The specific procedure they recommend for your needs
• The type of anaesthetic you’ll require – either a general anaesthetic (where you’ll be asleep) or a local or spinal anaesthetic (where you’ll be awake but unable to feel anything in the area being operated on)
• The potential benefits and risks of the procedure

Your consultant may need you to have additional tests or scans before they can recommend the next steps. Sometimes, particularly if you need a general anaesthetic, you may need to have a pre-operative assessment to check your fitness and overall health before the procedure.

Your stay

For most inguinal hernia repair surgery, you can leave on the same day, so you won’t need to stay overnight. However, if you do need to stay with us (for example if you have other medical conditions or live alone), you’ll have one of our 22 private, en-suite rooms, all of which have:

• TV
• Window
• Armchair
• WiFi

For day case procedures, you’ll be able to relax in a private, en-suite room until you’re ready to go home. This will usually be for a few hours until the nursing team feel you're fit for discharge.

Anaesthetic

For open hernia surgery, you can usually have a local or spinal anaesthetic, meaning you’ll be awake but unable to feel pain where you’re being operated on.

Procedure duration

Inguinal hernia repair surgery usually takes under one hour.

After surgery

It’s normal to feel some pain or discomfort after hernia surgery, so to make your recovery easier, our nurses will give you medication to help you manage pain.

Going home

Your consultant will be able to advise you on your expected recovery time, based on the surgery you had and your overall health. For most people, you should be back to your usual activities in around six weeks. You’ll return for a check-up appointment with your consultant around six weeks after your operation.

Although everyone’s different and your consultant will be able to give you advice specific to you, here’s a typical recovery timeline: