The Columbia Hernia Center

We are so so proud of our graduating abdominal wall surgery fellows this year for their accomplishments. Congratulations to David Morrell, MD who will be continuing his career in Utah, and Mike Turturro, MD who will be continuing his career in New Jersey. The training may have stopped but the family continues to grow. We look forward to big things from them! ⁣
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We are excited to announce the opening of our newest outpatient surgery clinic in Teaneck, NJ at GlenPointe. This state of the art center has everything we need to be able to see and take care of hernia patients from NY and NJ. Positioned right off the NJ turnpike right next to the GW bridge, this site has lunch options, a relaxing center space and a beautiful Marriott for patients from far away or out of town. Come check us out today!⁣⁣
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Location: 300 Frank W Burr Blvd, Suite 130, Teaneck, NJ 07667⁣⁣
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Call us today 📞 212-305-2038 to make an appointment!⁣⁣
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Another successful team spirit night in the books. Although the Rangers lost, it was still a great night to celebrate our Division and New York sports at the same time. ⁣⁣
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Excited to be hosting the 2024 Hernia Summit in Big Sky Montana. Thanks to the sponsors and to all the faculty. The snow couldn’t have been more perfect.

We are excited to announce the opening for applications to the 2024/2025 Abdominal Wall Surgery Fellowship at the Columbia Hernia Center. Applications are open until March 1st and decisions will be made on April 15th. Interested residents should submit their CV, 2-3 letters of recommendation and a personal statement to [email protected]⁣⁣
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To learn more check out the link below:⁣⁣

https://www.theherniaexperts.com/abdominal-wall-fellowship

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We are excited to show off our latest blog post about what supplies you should plan on buying for your hernia surgery. This was carefully curated from our own but also our patient experiences as well. Check out the site below or click the link in our story! Happy reading and preparing!⁣⁣
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https://www.theherniaexperts.com/blog/what-do-i-buy-for-hernia-surgery⁣⁣
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We are ecstatic to announce the arrival of our new abdominal wall surgeon Dr. Alex Addo!⁣
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He joins us with a wealth of experience in abdominal wall surgery and reconstruction. He did his medical training at Geisinger Medical Center, one of the largest health networks on the east coast, and did his fellowship training in advanced and robotic reconstructive techniques at Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis, MD.⁣
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He is also a prolific researcher who spent 2 entire years dedicated solely to the improvement of hernia care.⁣
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He is available to see patients immediately at our Washington Heights clinic space. Call (212)305-5947 to make an appointment today and start down your path to hernia recovery.⁣
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We are so blessed to have the most wonderful patients! Check out this expose on one of Dr. George’s patients and their road to recovery. Copy and paste the link to check it out or look at our story for a direct link.⁣
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https://www.columbiadoctors.org/news/delicate-dance-alberto-del-sazs-journey-through-hernia-surgery-and-recovery⁣
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We are really excited to share the launch of our independent website dedicated to sharing hernia information to patients and a little bit more about what we do. Check it out at theherniaexperts.com! Our hope is that before and after your visit, this site can be a resource to learn more about the hernia disease process and expected recovery. ⁣
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Early morning at AHS2023 learning about optimizing hernia surgery. S. Scott Davis from Emory going over the concept of prehabilitation, which contrary to rehabilitation, involves surgical optimization prior to surgery, leading to better outcomes. Always moving the field forward!⁣
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Dr. Kim Coughlin presents on TRAM flap hernias and the morbidity that this sometimes necessary operation brings. Once a previous Columbia Hernia Center fellow she now is a busy abdominal wall surgeon in Detroit!⁣
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Presidential address by Dr. Yuri Novitsky discussing the current state of hernia surgery, and a look towards the future. Very exciting to see where the field has come from in such a short time.
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Powerful keynote lecture by Dr. Sunil Geevarghese, MD from Vanderbilt University on resiliency in surgery and how to deal with moral injury. Powerful response from the audience, and a related topic to every practitioner no matter how experienced. ⁣
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Amazing lecture by Dr. Jorge Daes from Colombia on the essence of innovation in surgery and how it builds on the accomplishments of the past!⁣
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Really excited to kick off the American Hernia Society meeting in Austin, TX with an introduction by our Center Director and president of the Society Dr. Yuri Novitsky! So proud of him and what he’s accomplished for the field of hernia surgery. ⁣
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Hot off the press!⁣
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Both Dr. Novitsky and Dr. George were featured in this months edition of General Surgery News. ⁣
It’s great to be able to share our knowledge with the entire surgery community!⁣

Have you heard of re**us diastasis? It's a common condition that affects many people, especially after pregnancy. Re**us diastasis is when the abdominal muscles separate, causing a bulge in the middle of the abdomen. It may be mistaken for a hernia in a lot of patients, however it is also common to have hernias as well as re**us diastasis, especially in the belly button. ⁣
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Re**us diastasis can lead to bulging, discomfort, poor posture, inability to use your core, and even back pain. ⁣
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It is common after pregnancy but can also occur in patients who do a lot of lifting, and can happen as we age. ⁣
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If you think you may have re**us diastasis, it's important to see a doctor for diagnosis such as an abdominal wall specialist at the Columbia Hernia Center. Your doctor may perform a physical exam to check for muscle separation or recommend imaging tests like a CT scan.⁣
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In certain cases, physical therapy and special exercises may help, however the only definitive treatment is with surgery. During the procedure, the muscles are brought back together and tightened, restoring the strength and appearance of the abdominal wall. Your doctor can help you determine the best course of action for your condition. ⁣
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Remember, re**us diastasis is a common condition that can be effectively treated, and you deserve to feel confident and comfortable in your own skin.⁣
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Call us for a consultation at 2123055947!⁣
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**usdiastasis ⁣⁣⁣⁣

That’s a wrap for Hernia Summit 2023 in Vail. See you all next year in Big Sky!

Never a boring holiday party with the Columbia Hernia Center crew! We are all looking forward to a new year with some really exciting and fun developments. ⁣
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Happy Holidays from all of us to you and your loved ones! 🎁🎀☃️⁣
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We want to say congratulations to Dr. Philip George for giving a lecture at Surgical Academia, which is an international symposium for surgeons from around the world. He discussed the TAR technique or the transversus abdominis release technique, which is a reconstructive option for the abdominal wall to manage large to massive hernias which was pioneered by our own Dr. Yuri Novitsky. We are always so thankful for being able to share new techniques and skills with surgeons from around the globe. Thanks to Surgical Academia, Dr. Manash Ranjan Sahoo for putting the talk together and Dr. Jignesh Gandhi for moderating. ⁣
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Never stop teaching and never stop learning! 📖🧠💡⁣
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The Columbia Hernia Center goes global! ⁣⁣
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Dr. Dina Podolsky has a passion for mission work and just came back from spending 1 week in Guatemala on a trip in order to bring hernia surgery to hundreds of patients who would otherwise not have access to care. Her skills were highly sought after in order to take care of patients in an environment with limited resources. She made long lasting memories with amazing new friends and looks forward to continuing the global outreach of the Columbia Hernia Center!⁣⁣
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We are excited to have a great kickoff for the American Hernia Society National conference this year in Charlotte, NC. Our very own Division Chief Dr. Yuri Novitsky is chairing the conference and we are excited to be able to be a part of a large collaborative hernia society to share new techniques and debate interesting topics. The Columbia Hernia Center is well represented with our abdominal wall surgery fellow, our residents and our Division faculty. ⁣
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We are delighted to announce that Tori Consalvo has joined The Columbia Hernia Center as our abdominal wall surgery nurse practitioner! Tori received her undergraduate nursing degree from Western CT State University and her graduate degree from New York University. Tori has extensive experience in the medical-surgical and perioperative specialties and worked side-by-side with our Hernia Center team in the operating room at NYP prior to joining our center. She was one of the nurses who helped pioneer robotic surgery teaching at CUMC for a number of team members in the operating room. We are excited to add her expertise to our center.⁣
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Another year another fresh start! We are excited to have Dr. Artem Shmelev join us as our clinical fellow in Abdominal Wall Reconstruction for the 2022-2023 year. After medical school he was invited for a research fellowship in cardiovascular dynamics. He then underwent rigorous general surgery training at Ascension St. Agnes hospital in Baltimore, MD with specialty rotations in abdominal wall surgery with Dr. Igor Belyansky in Annapolis, MD. We are excited to bring his research and clinical expertise to our department for the year and are excited to see where his career takes him afterwards!⁣
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If you are interested in a position as our abdominal wall surgery fellow at Columbia University Medical center, check out our website at https://columbiasurgery.org/hernia/applying-hernia-fellowships⁣
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It's now easier to call The Columbia Hernia Center.

The Columbia Hernia Center updated their website address.