Mesh repair of inguinal and femoral hernia

• Published in: Chirurgia italiana Vol. 52; no. 5; p. 579
• Main Authors: Leardi, S, Delmonaco, S, Pietroletti, R, Perri, S, Citone, G, Simi, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Italian
• Published: Italy 01-09-2000
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Female; Hernia, Femoral - surgery; Hernia, Inguinal - surgery; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Surgical Mesh
• ISSN: 0009-4773

The authors describe a 6-year experience with mesh repair of inguinal and femoral hernia in a surgical teaching department. Two hundred and ninety-seven hernioplasties were performed in 256 consecutive patients: 237 Trabucco sutureless and 11 Lichtenstein tension-free hernioplasties for inguinal hernia; 21 tension-free hernioplasties for femoral hernia; 20 Wantz GPRVS and 8 Rutkow tension-free hernioplaties for recurrences. Local anaesthesia was used in 59% of cases. Seventy-two patients (28.1%) refused this type of anaesthesia. The hospital stay was two days in all cases. The local postoperative morbidity rate was 8.7% (wound infections: 1.0%; neuralgia: 1.3%; haematomas: 2.0%; seromas: 2.3%; no testicular atrophies). The recurrence rate was 1.9% in the group of patients undergoing surgery from 1994 to 1997 (103 herniorrhaphies; follow-up: 3-6 years) and 0% in the group of patients operated on after 1997 (170 herniorrhaphies; follow-up: 2 years-6 months). The results confirm that the use of a prosthetic mesh (patch and plug) is the treatment of choice for hernia repair. Moreover, this experience in a surgical teaching department shows that these procedures can be safely and effectively performed by all surgeons.