Martin Kurzer was awarded the iWantGreatCare certificate of excellence in 2025 for delivering outstanding care.
Reviews
22.07.2017 It has now been just under two weeks since my right side inguinal hernia operation performed by Mr. Martin Kurzer and it is amazing that I remember that I have actually had the operation only when somebody asks: “How are you feeling?”; that is how quick the healing process has been.
I had relatively small hernia for about 6 months when I finally had the time to do something about it. Having read through hundreds of pieces of information about inguinal hernia including some very negative experiences I wound myself up enough to be close to sheer panic.
My very first meeting with Mr. Kurzer was the most reassuring and calming. His very kind and most professional approach assured me I was in safe hands. I had my operation one week after the meeting with Mr. Kurzer and I could not be more grateful to him for understanding my personal circumstances and arranging the operation for me so soon; I had to start a new job in two weeks’ time, hence the worry about the recovery time.
On the day of the operation, from the moment when I arrived in St John and St Elizabeth hospital accompanied by my husband, I was astonished by the level of attention and care that I received from the hospital’s staff. Everyone was amazingly friendly and not once I felt that the process was rushed and overwhelming. This environment definitely helped to relax and put my mind at ease before the operation.
The technique used by Mr. Kurzer was open mesh repair performed under sedation with local anaesthetic. Post-operation care and attention was superb.
My husband and I left the hospital the same day around 18pm; about an hour of journey home went without any issues. I had slight concerns about the amount of pain I would have after the operation once the anaesthetic would start wearing off, I never had to use any painkillers!
The night after the operation, I had wonderful rest, and from the next day onwards I felt absolutely fine. I did have a bit of swelling around the wound area, which gradually decreased to a minimum. The first 3 or 4 days after the ops you do need to be prepared to take things a bit easier just out of common sense, the way you get up and move around, but from the very next day I was able to do some of my routine activities and even go for a little walk.
I am back to my normal routine now (12th day after the ops) and I am so happy that I have fully recovered and ready to face new job challenges next week! So much worry and unnecessary stress – all gone thanks to care and highest level of professionalism of Mr. Martin Kurzer! Thank you so much!
I had surgery on my inguinal hernia carried out 2 weeks ago and have felt almost no pain or discomfort since.
With a hectic work schedule approaching, including a trip to The Far East, I was concerned about facing several weeks off work. After meeting Martin Kurzer I was quickly reassured that my recovery would be quick and I was back on a 13 hour flight just seven days after surgery.
The procedure itself was under a local anaesthetic with sedation and was able to check out of the hospital just three hours afterwards. The team at St John and Elizabeth were helpful and made the process very smooth.
Following some minor discomfort on the second day, I started to walk for 20-30 minutes per day from day 3 onwards and was able to stop taking pain killers after five days. Two weeks after surgery I began some light gym work and I have not felt in any way restricted.
Mr Kurzer is both helpful and reassuring and he has regularly followed up by phone and email since the procedure to check on how the recovery has been going. With so many conflicting articles online, his advice is practical and has made what initially seemed quite daunting to be very straightforward.
I would highly recommend anyone needing hernia surgery to do everything they can to get an appointment with Mr Kurzer.
A week after my inguinal hernia operation I feel great. I felt good about Martin Kurzer operating on me because his calm assured manner and thorough explanation of the procedure made me feel that I was in safe hands. That proved to be very much the case. I was seen for a consultation on a Thursday and had the operation the following Wednesday.
I felt slightly apprehensive but the smoothness of everything at the Hospital of St. John and St Elizabeth made me feel confident that all would go to plan. Mr Kurzer came to see me to explain some details There was a brief wait in my room then a nurse told me to get changed and explained the process. She was followed by the anaesthetist who explained some more.
Then I went to the theatre area and felt like a part of the action. The needle in the back of my hand did not hurt a bit and although I was told that I would feel woozy everything was just as normal - I felt completely me.
Then they wheeled me back to the room and I rested for a while until a pre-ordered lunch arrived.
I had the operation but I knew nothing about it at all. No recollection whatsoever.
I took a taxi home a few hours later and felt calm and had no pain. There was no need for painkillers nor has there been throughout.
Mr Kurzer called me the following morning to ask how I felt. I felt good. I rose later than usual but felt completely ok. The following day I went for a walk and all was normal.
A week later I feel very little discomfort. I have to be careful with some movements but otherwise all is good. This is improving each day and its good to see the progress back to full normality.
Mr Kurzer and his team are so professional and so good that I have nothing but admiration for for their work. I paid for the operation myself (having no insurance) and it was excellent value because it has brought me from a state of being in some distress to being back to how I want to be.
The whole experience was positive. The outcome is positive. I feel positive.
I would recommend Mr Kurzer to anyone who wants the best. My only previous operation was having my tonsils removed in 1962 and I have had some dentistry so I am not an expert. But I know a good thing when I am lucky enough for it to come my way. And this was a totally good thing.
Nick Lerner
July 2017
I had the misfortune to suffer a femoral hernia some two years after receiving treatment for an inguinal (I'm going to take great care in the future to avoid a full house!). However, after the initial horror of realising what had happened at a time when I simply could not afford to be laid up, Martin Kurzer was extremely reassuring, and arranged for the op' quickly and efficiently. I had general anaesthetic and had to stay in one night, but the whole experience was extremely stress-free, and I suffered little or no pain and discomfort afterwards. The incision has healed perfectly, and I am now hardly aware of it at all. Thank you Martin, and all your helpful and caring staff, for making such a potentially traumatic event ultimately so satisfactorily resolved!
Having received inguinal hernia advice along with the incidence of chronic pain in my location, I was advised to research the matter further on the internet. I spent a considerable time doing this. It became clear that an opinion from a leading London hernia specialist was essential. A consultation with Martin Kurzer was arranged on 23 March 2017. He was reassuring and clearly knowledgeable. I decided to let him undertake the primary open hernia repair with mesh on 26 April 2017 at the age of 67.
The hernia repair with a local anesthetic and sedation, involving an overnight stay in hospital, went well. There was no noticeable pain thereafter other than soreness at the incision site. Soreness getting in and out of bed, getting up from a sofa or low chair and putting on socks and shoes, but not when walking. This lasted for about six days, slowly diminishing after the third day. Within 48 hours I walked three miles on the flat with my wife with no problems whatsoever. On the ninth day, I went to the gym and did twenty minutes on the crosstrainer, just one level down from my usual mid-level resistance. Now some three weeks later, the swelling has practically gone and the area is not really sensitive to touch. I look forward to playing competitive tennis in another three weeks.
There is much positively said about selecting a specialist hernia surgeon at a hernia centre for the best outcome. This has very much been my case and I would recommend Martin Kurzer's skills in the area of hernia surgery. Not only is he excellent, he has a very good anesthetist along with a caring team at the Hospital of St John & St. Elizabeth, London.
Profile
Martin Kurzer is a specialist hernia surgeon. http://www.martinkurzer.com
He joined the British Hernia Centre in 1991, and now has his own practice based at the Hospital of St John and Elizabeth, London NW8.
His surgical training was at University College Hospital and the Royal Free Hospital, London. He then spent two years in the USA returning in 1987, when he went into full time private practice.
His main interests are in local anaesthetic day-case surgery, the use of tension free mesh and the repair of complex recurrent groin hernias.
He speaks regularly at UK and international conferences and has published numerous peer reviewed articles and book chapters on all aspects of hernia surgery. He is a keen supporter of the charity ‘Operation Hernia’ (www.operationhernia.org.uk and has visited Ghana with the charity in the past.
He is a co-founder, and an ex-president, of the British Hernia Society. http://www.britishherniasociety.org