is planned in order to help relieve symptoms, respect the person's preference, and prevent future complications that may require emergency surgery.

Surgery is offered to the majority of people who:
* have symptoms that interfere with their normal level of activity.
* have hernias that become increasingly difficult to reduce.
* are female as it is often difficult to classify the subtype of hernia based on an exam alone.Symptomatic hernias tend to cause pain or discomfort within the groin region that may increase with exertion