Hernia Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Hernia, including details on hiatal, inguinal, umbilical, abdominal, treatment.

Occult ventral hernia defects: a common finding during laparoscopic ventral hernia repair.

Saber AA, Rao AJ, Itawi EA, Elgamal MH, Martinez RL

Department of Surgery, Michigan State University/Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies, 1000 Oakland Drive, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USA. saber@kcms.msu.edu

BACKGROUND: In many incidences, laparoscopic exploration reveals occult ventral hernia defects that were not detected on physical examination. The objective of this study was to describe the frequency of occult ventral hernia defects detected during laparoscopy. METHODS: Prospectively collected data on 146 consecutive patients who underwent laparoscopic ventral hernia repair were reviewed. The numbers of ventral defects found on preoperative physical examination were compared with those found during the laparoscopic procedure. RESULTS: Out of 146 laparoscopic ventral hernia repair patients, 70 patients (48%) were found to have occult defects that were not detected on preoperative abdominal examination. Among all the possible variables, only the type of hernia was found to have a significant difference. CONCLUSION: Almost half of the patients with a ventral hernia have clinically occult hernia defects that can be recognized laparoscopically. This indicates the importance of careful inspection of the anterior abdominal wall during the surgical procedure.

Published 25 March 2008 in Am J Surg, 195(4): 471-3.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Hernia Research Today. All Rights Reserved.