Sylvia Kramer's hiatal hernia produced acid reflex so severe she couldn't eat past 4 p.m. if she wanted a good night's rest. She talks about her condition and the treatment she received at the University of Maryland Medical Center in the following interview.
How did you end up coming to the University of Maryland Medical Center to see Dr. Adrian Park?
I have been bothered by hiatal hernia for a number of years. But then I started to feel some other symptoms, which took me to my gastroenterologist in Severna Park. He took tests and found out that I had a paraesophageal hiatal hernia [when a portion of the stomach bulges through the opening in the diaphragm and rests alongside the esophagus].
My doctor said I needed to go to the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) to see Dr. Adrian Park [UMMC's Chief of General Surgery and a professor of surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine]. Needless to say I took his recommendation and that's how I came to see Dr. Park.
What was his diagnosis?
He also reaffirmed that the diagnosis was paraesophageal hiatal hernia. That is what was giving me this new discomfort I was feeling. Otherwise, I would have gone on with what I was doing.
Describe the discomfort and the symptoms you had before the operation.
I had GERD (acid reflux) because of the hiatal hernia, and when I did tend to regurgitate I felt a radiating sensation in my back, which was a rather new symptom. That's what brought me back to the gastroenterologist.
The acid reflux caused me to wake up at night with a burning sensation. If I ate after 4 p.m., I'd be very uncomfortable when I would lie down late at night. I would wake up at night with a burning, horrible sensation. It was extremely uncomfortable.
What course of action did Dr. Park recommend?
Dr. Park explained very carefully my condition and the operation he wanted to do. I decided it would be better for me to consider having this operation. He also explained to me that it would probably (and hopefully) be done laparoscopically. Otherwise it would be a much more involved situation if they had to operate surgically.
He convinced me that it was doable and that he had performed a lot of these operations. He just made me feel very comfortable with the fact that this could be done. I had more tests taken, and he convinced me that I was going to be fine.
How quickly did you recover after the surgery?
I thought possibly I was in for a fairly long recovery period and I had plans to go to Florida. The doctors convinced me that I was going to go on this trip, which was scheduled to happen three weeks after the surgery. And I did. Two days after the operation I was home. I recuperated for about a week. At the end of the week I was in my car, out and about. Two and a half weeks later I was in Tampa, Florida and I was doing lots of things, so the recuperation factor was fabulous.
What is different about your life if you compare it before and now after surgery?
There's no comparison. I would have to eat my meals at least by 4 p.m. if I were going to have any comfort in the evening hours, which would make it kind of hard if you wanted to go out to dinner. I was overweight, so I've taken off some weight since the surgery. A lot of the discomfort that I had before the surgery I don't have now at all. The surgery has definitely made a difference.
I'm so conditioned to eating early at this point that I still do eat early, but at a recent Passover Seder, I ate at 8 p.m. Then I went to bed like a normal person. Now I don't even take medications I took before. I feel like a whole new person. It's like being born again. This operation took the symptoms away completely.
What would you say to someone with similar symptoms or a similar condition you had? What would you tell them about your experience?
It was so easy for me, and I had a very severe condition according to Dr. Park. I had a huge hiatal hernia. The procedure itself was easy. I have nothing but the greatest admiration for Dr. Park for making it so easy to make the decision to have the surgery.
How did you about the care you received at the UM Medical Center?
I received fabulous care, positively fabulous. I have nothing but good things to say about the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Interview by Michelle W. Murray
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