RESUMO
With a prevalence of 0.3-0.5/1000 births, congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) remains a serious, poorly understood abnormality with a high mortality rate that cannot always be effectively managed. Its reported frequency in Spain is 0.69%00 with a yearly decreasing trend of 0.10%00 during the period 1980-2006. Up to 5% of cases are incidentally identified in adults undergoing studies for other reasons.We report the case of a 74-year-old woman with vomiting for three months due to parasternal diaphragmatic hernia of Morgagni-Larrey (retrochondrosternal, retrocostoxyphoid, retrosternal, subcostal, substernal or subcostosternal hernia), which allowed us to report an update on this condition in the adult, and on thoracoabdominal diaphragm morphogenesis. It is in the embryology of the diaphragm where an explanation may be found for some morphological changes and clinical manifestations, even though a number of uncertainties remain. We also analyze the extent of controversy persisting on some aspects of surgical treatment (access routes, mesh use, hernial sac reduction). Overall, minimally invasive techniques predominate. We consider laparoscopy the approach of choice for adult patients with parasternal hernia eligible for surgery.