What is the chance of an abdominal hernia after surgery?

Common: The incidence of incisional hernias is quite variable depending upon the operation (midline incisions have the highest risk) and the health of the patient. Factors that increase the risk include obesity, smoking, wound infections, malnutrition, heavy lifting, etc. Following a midline incision, hernia rates have been published as low as 5% and as high as 20% incidence.

Variable: The risk of an incisional hernia varies depending on several factors. Incision size is important, with far fewer hernias after laparoscopic surgery than open surgery. Obesity also greatly increases the risk of hernia formation, as do diabetes and poor nutrition. Based on these factors, incisional hernia formation can range from as low as 2-3% up to over 40%.

About 20%: If you are referring to an open abdominal procedure, the hernia rate is about 18% from the incision unless the short stitch technique is used, which lowers the risk to about 5%. This is for midline, first time incisions. Infection, immune status, genetics, obesity, and post-op activity also play a role in hernia development after an operation. Hope this helps!