ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Chirurgia 2002 August-October;15(4-5):131-4

Copyright © 2002 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: Italian

Inguinal hernia repair surgery. Personal experience

Ragazzi R., Pace G., Cremona S., Vaccaro R., Di Pietro S., Buttafuoco A., Ragazzi S., Pace S.

Background. Just like all the surgical schools in the world when faced with the high incidence of recurrences following hernioplasty with traditional technique (Bassini), the authors have carried out hernioplasty using prostheses (Rives and modified Shouldice) and tension-free operations (Trabucco, Leichtenstein) with prosthesis, seeing that the musculo-aponeurotic structures of the inguinal canal could not be utilised owing to degenerative lesions of the elastic and collagen fibres, especially in recurrent hernias.
Methods. The authors present their own experience of the last 5 years of 516 patients operated on for inguinal hernia of whom 62 were operated on for congenital inguinal hernia using the Bassini technique and 454 were operated on for acquired inguinal hernia, election or strangulated, and for important hernia of which 345 patients were operated on with inguinal hernioplasty with Rives prosthesis, 13 with hernioplasty with modified Shouldice prosthesis, 84 with tension-free technique with Trabucco prosthesis and 12 for hernioplasty with Leichtenstein prosthesis.
Results. The results obtained operating with scrupulous technique were excellent. Only two cases of intolerance to the prosthesis were encountered and this disappeared with time, and only 3.8/o inguino-scrotal postoperative oedema which resolved spontaneously. No recurrence was observed at 12-48 month follow-up and no other complication was reported by other surgical schools.
Conclusions. Adopting the various types of hernioplasty with prosthesis according to the needs of the patients, the authors state that they obtained excellent postoperative results with early rising and eating, short admissions and rapid return to work, with total cure of treated patients.