Q: I am a 48 years old woman who had undergone total hysterectomy last week. I was discharged from the hospital 3 days back. The doctor used laparoscope to detach the uterus and he made an abdominal incision to remove the 13 cm x 10 cm fibroid. Yesterday, he advised me to lie down on my stomach for at least 12 to 16 hours. Now, I am experiencing pain in the lower abdomen below the incision. What could be the reason for that?

A:The pain is probably related to healing. After surgery some nerves always get entrapped in the regenerating fibrous tissue, and cause pain. In some cases the nerves are bigger, and are associated with more pain. This pain is likely to go away in a few days, but may even take weeks. Do visit your doctor, however, to ensure that there is no infection.