Hiatal Hernia Repair & Nissen Fundoplication In Wesley Chapel

The procedure takes 1.5 to 2 hours, is performed laparoscopically or robotically under general anesthesia, and you go home the same day.

Through several small incisions, the stomach is drawn back below the diaphragm, the hiatus is repaired and tightened, and the wrap is constructed and checked for position and tension before closing. Larger hernias, scarring from prior surgery, or complex anatomy can extend the time.

Diet progresses over 2 to 3 months. Liquids first, then soft textures, then normal food, as the internal repair heals. This part is not optional. Vomiting in the early postoperative period is associated with early failure of a hiatal hernia repair, which is why anesthesia handling and nausea control matter as much here as the operation itself.

That’s also why every case runs at one hospital with the same team. Dr. Grandhige previously operated at four facilities and consolidated to one on purpose. The anesthesiologists understand foregut physiology, the surgical staff set up the same specialized equipment the same way, and his own physician assistant is in every case and in the follow-up afterward.

For patients with typical reflux symptoms who have objective evidence of reflux, workable anatomy and good esophageal function, the practice reports greater than 95 percent achieving significant symptom relief, coming off daily reflux medication, and satisfaction with the result. Those conditions are the whole sentence. Outcomes are lower in patients with reduced motility, very large or recurrent hernias, prior foregut surgery, or previous bariatric surgery, and that conversation happens before any decision, not after.

A Nissen makes it harder for acid to come up. That same mechanism makes it harder for air and food to come up. Any page that skips this is selling you something.

Burping and vomiting. A full wrap can limit both. Depending on the configuration, the effect may be temporary or permanent. Dr. Grandhige’s framing: adults heave rather than vomit the way children do, and not being able to vomit solid food is not dangerous, because solids exit the other way in time. Gas and bloating are the most common complaints. If keeping the ability to belch and vomit is a priority for you, that pushes toward a different procedure, and it’s a legitimate reason to choose one.

Swallowing changes. Expected during healing, and time-limited when the wrap was matched to your motility. Long term, most patients eat everything, including foods they’d cut out years earlier because of reflux.

Durability. These are functional operations. Like a joint replacement, they work well, they’re subject to wear, and some patients need revision over a lifetime. Hernia size and age influence how long a repair holds.

Timing, if your symptoms are throat-based. Typical heartburn and regurgitation often resolve almost immediately. LPR symptoms commonly take 4 to 6 months to settle. Knowing that in advance is the difference between patience and panic at week six.

TIF has a stated failure rate. Dr. Grandhige quotes 2 percent per year, roughly 20 percent per decade, because TIF addresses the sphincter and cannot repair the diaphragm. He describes it as the best endoscopic procedure available and not a permanent solution, and he declines to perform it on patients outside its narrow criteria.

Surgery fixes reflux, not every symptom. Patients arrive wanting one diagnosis to explain everything. Heartburn and regurgitation may clear completely while bloating or abdominal pain persists from a different mechanism. At six months, remaining symptoms get addressed, sometimes with another specialist.

The patients Dr. Grandhige declines to operate on are often the most frustrated ones. They would be far more frustrated after an unnecessary operation that left the symptoms in place.

On August 20, 2026, the FDA granted premarket approval to RefluxStop, an implant placed at the top of the stomach that holds the gastroesophageal junction in its normal position without encircling the esophagus. Dr. Grandhige is adding it, and you can follow status on the RefluxStop page.

Two things about that approval are worth your attention, and neither is in the manufacturer’s marketing.

First, the rollout is deliberately narrow. The approval clears commercial distribution in the United States, but the company has said it is starting with a limited set of trained centers rather than a broad launch. A national approval date and local availability are not the same date.

Second, read the indication. In the FDA’s summary of safety and effectiveness data, the device is indicated for patients diagnosed with GERD “defined by abnormal impedance pH and/or pH testing.” The FDA wrote objective testing into the label itself. The workup that qualifies you for the newest device is the same workup that tells you whether a Nissen, a partial wrap, LINX or TIF fits your anatomy.

So the practical answer is the same either way. Waiting for a device you haven’t been tested for costs you months. Get the testing done. It is portable across every option on the table, including the ones that arrive next year.

You don’t have to decide anything today. You do have to find out what’s actually happening, and that takes objective testing rather than another year of guessing. Send your records to info@tampareflux.com and the consultation starts from a real picture of your case. If the testing shows surgery helps you, you’ll know which procedure and why. If it shows surgery won’t, you’ll hear that instead.