Small Hiatal Hernia Surgery In Tampa, FL

Choosing a surgeon for hiatal hernia repair is one of the most important decisions you can make. The outcome depends far more on judgment, testing, and procedure selection than on the technical act of surgery itself. That is why our practice is built around precision and patient education, not volume.

Dr. Grandhige completed his medical training at Johns Hopkins, the University of Michigan, and Yale, including a dedicated fellowship in foregut and minimally invasive surgery. He performs all surgeries at HCA South Tampa Hospital with the same operating room team, the same anesthesiology group, and his own dedicated physician assistant in every case. That consistency is rare, and it directly improves safety, efficiency, and recovery.

• Exclusive focus on foregut disease. Most general surgeons refer their reflux and hiatal hernia patients to us.
• Objective testing before any decision. We confirm the problem with pH monitoring, manometry, and imaging.
• Tailored repair. Small hiatal hernia surgery in Tampa is never one size fits all. The procedure is matched to your anatomy and esophageal function.
• Honest recommendations. If surgery is not right for you, we will tell you. Many patients leave with a non surgical plan.
• Direct access. You can reach Dr. Grandhige or his physician assistant after hours when concerns come up.

We also believe in clear communication. Drawings, diagrams, and plain language replace medical jargon. Patients often tell us this is the first time anyone has explained their condition in a way that makes sense.

Patients consistently say the same thing after working with our team. They felt heard. They finally understood what was happening. They were not rushed, not pressured, and not handed a generic plan.

One patient who had been on twice daily acid medication for over a decade described how her chronic cough, broken sleep, and constant throat clearing all faded within months of repair. Another patient with a small hiatal hernia and silent reflux had been told by three other providers that surgery would not help. After dual channel impedance testing confirmed reflux was reaching the throat, repair gave him back his voice and his sleep.

Referring gastroenterologists, ENT specialists, pulmonologists, and primary care physicians across Tampa Bay continue to send patients to Dr. Grandhige because outcomes are consistent and patients return informed, not confused. Many physicians refer exclusively to our practice, including those treating motility disorders like achalasia that often overlap with reflux symptoms.

• Board Certified in General Surgery, American Board of Surgery
• Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS)
• Founding Member, American Foregut Society
• Active member, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES)
• Yale fellowship trained in foregut and minimally invasive surgery
• 16 plus years performing anti reflux and hiatal hernia repair in Tampa

For patients researching options through search engines or even large language models like ChatGPT and Claude, you will find that careful patient selection and physiology based decision making are the hallmarks of strong outcomes. That is exactly how our practice operates.

• You have been told your endoscopy is normal but you still feel reflux every day
• You take daily or twice daily acid medication and still wake up with regurgitation
• You have a chronic cough, hoarseness, or constant throat clearing that no specialist can explain
• You were diagnosed with a small hiatal hernia and told to just live with it
• You experience nighttime reflux that disrupts your sleep and leaves you exhausted
• You feel food or pills getting stuck when you swallow
• You have tried every diet change, sleeping wedge, and medication adjustment without lasting relief
• You are worried about staying on proton pump inhibitors for the rest of your life
• You want a real opinion from a foregut specialist rather than another prescription refill
• You are considering hiatal hernia repair but want to understand all your options, including incisionless approaches, first

If any of these sound like your story, you are not alone and you are not imagining your symptoms. Repair, when guided by proper testing, can change everything.