hernia? mesh? mass?

ok had gastric bypass open in 2001. lost lots and regaind a lto back. have had many deficiencies amoung other things. I am currently on disability and wonder how much of my medical is due to the bypass.  Recently I have noticed a buldge between my breat and my belly button. it looks a bit uneven, more to the left then right. I was concerned maybe a hernia. it does cause some pain off and on. feels like a ball in there or something.  I went to a bariatric surgeon the other day. he examined my "buldge" and wasn't sure if a hernia or a me****hink he said mesh and not mass but I didn't think about it at the time to ask him to clarify. anyway, can someone tell me if he DID say mesh what mesh would he be talking about? also anyone have a buldge where I am talking about?  I did have a "hernia" a marble size lump right above my belly button in late 2001 which I was told was a hernia. when I went in to have it removed along with the excess skin fromt he weight loss the dor ended up giving me 144 stapeles up and down and across the pubic hairline. like an upside down "T". I got very sick and he said something about I was allergic to the inside staples that were used in my orignina WLS and they had been working their way to the top???  that is how I understood it. anyway, not ia m dealng with this. anyone have anything like this happen???  thanks

It is possible that the surgeon added mesh during your original hernia repair, but if (s)he did, it is unlikely that the bulge is from the mesh.  It is more likely that the hernia has recurred (relatively common if it was a medium to large hernia and the surgeon did not repair it with mesh).  Since your hernia wasn't very large, though, it seems more likely to me (and this is nothing more than my speculation) that he would have said he didn't know if it was a hernia or a mass.

A CT scan will tell the surgeon exactly what it is, though, so you can easily find out.  Did he suggest an ultrasound or CT to follow-up?  

If you were not sure what he said, you would have been better off, to just ask him to clarify what he said than to ask us to guess.  I have never had a doctor get upset because I wasn't sure what (a)he said and asked them to clarify or repeat what was said.

A hernia, BTW,  is a tear in the abdominal muscle that needs to be sewn closed, not something like a mass that they remove.

Lora

p.s. It would be very rare for the staples from a previous surgery to be "working their way to the top", so I wouldn't worry at all about that.

Thanks for respnonding.  I might have been confusing. Back in 2001 I had a small marble size hernia right above my belly button. When the doc remove4d that he also did the tummy tuck. It was at that time he said what he did about the allergy to staples and hence I ended up with the 144 staples.  Currently what this buldge is id unknoen. I went to a diff dr last week and he is the one who ordered CT to see what is going on.  When he told me he wasn't sure if it was a hernia or "mesh" I didn't question what I heard until I got home and my daughter asked if he said mesh or mass. I then thought maybe I did hear him wrong.  anyway, I was just asking if anyone has had a buldge such asi described or if anyone heard about surgeons using a "mesh" during a gastric bypass.  thanks