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| Strangulated hernia |
This poor man came to the hospital with groin pain. His hernia, which he had for more than 10 years, was incarcerated for 1 week. We immediately took him to surgery and found strangulated bowel. He was septic and died after several days.
He died from a simple problem that could have easily been corrected-a hernia. Unfortunately, he did not have enough money to get a repair. This occurs often in the third world but also in the USA. The WHO estimates that one billion people lack access to healthcare-one seventh of the world's population.
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| The dark reddish, black areas are dead intestine |
There is no health insurance in the third world. In some countries, and even in a few parts of Nigeria, the government will pay for healthcare. But there are often long delays. In most of Nigeria, health care is paid for out-of-pocket. If there is nothing in the pocket, then there is no health care.
