Laparoscopic repair of concurrent direct and indirect inguinal, femoral, and obturator hernias on the same side: A case report.

Concurrent direct and indirect inguinal, femoral, and obturator hernias are rare. This case report describes a rare case treated using the laparoscopic approach. A 68-year-old female patient presented with a moving left inguinal lump and pain. Physical examination and abdominal computed tomography scan revealed the coexistence of a left inguinal hernia or Nuck canal hydrocele and a left femoral hernia. The patient underwent laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair, and all four orifices were covered with one mesh. The patient was discharged on the second postoperative day without any complications. The concurrent presence of four hernias on the same side is rare and has not been previously reported. The laparoscopic approach is useful in such cases because it allows visualization of multiple hernia orifices from the intra-abdominal cavity.

Obturator Hernia in a Patient Undergoing Hemodialysis.

Obturator hernia is a rare condition that commonly affects frail older women. A 54-year-old woman presented to our hospital with left hip joint pain. She had suffered a left pubic bone fracture and commenced maintenance hemodialysis. Pelvic computed tomography (CT) showed an incarcerated small intestine through the left obturator foramen, while abdominal CT showed marked intestinal dilatation. She underwent emergency laparotomy, and the incarcerated small intestine was found to be necrotic. Partial small intestinal resection and bilateral obturator hernioplasty were performed. Because obturator hernia is a potentially fatal condition, early detection and treatment are important.

Epidemiology and surgical management of 184 obturator hernias: a nationwide registry-based cohort study.

PURPOSE: We aimed describe the patient characteristics, surgical details, postoperative outcomes, and prevalence and incidence of obturator hernias. Obturator hernias are rare with high mortality and no consensus on the best surgical approach. Given their rarity, substantial data is lacking, especially related to postoperative outcomes. METHODS: The study was based on data from the nationwide Danish Hernia Database. All adults who underwent obturator hernia surgery in Denmark during 1998-2023 were included. The primary outcomes were demographic characteristics, surgical details, postoperative outcomes, and the prevalence and incidence of obturator hernias. RESULTS: We included 184 obturator hernias in 167 patients (88% females) with a median age of 77 years. Emergency surgeries constituted 42% of repairs, and 72% were laparoscopic. Mesh was used in 77% of the repairs, with sutures exclusively used in emergency repairs. Concurrent groin hernias were found in 57% of cases. Emergency surgeries had a 30-day mortality of 14%, readmission rate of 21%, and median length of stay of 6 days. Elective surgeries had a 30-day mortality of 0%, readmission rate of 10%, and median length of stay of 0 days. The prevalence of obturator hernias in hernia surgery was 0.084% (95% CI: 0.071%-0.098%), with an incidence of one per 400,000 inhabitants annually. CONCLUSIONS: This was the largest cohort study to date on obturator hernias. They were rare, affected primarily elderly women. The method of repair depends on whether the presentation is acute, and emergency repair is associated with higher mortality.

Management and outcomes of obturator hernias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: Obturator Hernia (OH) is a rare type of abdominal wall hernia. It usually occurs in elderly women with late symptomatic presentation, increasing mortality rates. Surgery is the standard of care for OH, and laparotomy with simple suture closure of the defect is commonly used. Given the rarity of this disease, large studies are lacking, and data to drive management are still limited. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to describe current surgical options for OHs, with a focus on comparing the effectiveness and safety of mesh use with primary repair. METHODS: PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane were searched for studies comparing mesh and non-mesh repair for OH. Postoperative outcomes were assessed by pooled analysis and meta-analysis. Statistical analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4. RESULTS: One thousand seven hundred and sixty studies were screened and sixty-seven were thoroughly reviewed. We included 13 observational studies with 351 patients surgically treated for OH with mesh or non-mesh repair. One hundred and twenty (34.2%) patients underwent mesh repair and two hundred and thirty-one (65.81%) underwent non-mesh repair. A total of 145 (41.3%) underwent bowel resection, with the majority having a non-mesh repair performed. Hernia recurrence was significantly higher in patients who underwent hernia repair without mesh (RR 0.31; 95% CI 0.11-0.94; p = 0.04). There were no differences in mortality (RR 0.64; 95% CI 0.25-1.62; p = 0.34; I2 = 0%) or complication rates (RR 0.59; 95% CI 0.28-1.25; p = 0.17; I2 = 50%) between both groups. CONCLUSION: Mesh repair in OH was associated with lower recurrence rates without an increase in postoperative complications. While mesh in clean cases is more likely to offer benefits, an overall recommendation regarding its use in OH repair cannot be made due to potential bias across studies. Given that many OH patients are frail and present emergently, the decision to use mesh is complex and should consider the patient's clinical status, comorbidities, and degree of intraoperative contamination.

Manual reduction for incarcerated obturator hernia.

Emergent surgery is a common approach for incarcerated obturator hernias, with high morbidity and mortality rates. Moreover, there have been reports of elective surgery cases after noninvasive manual reduction. For a decade, the initial approach in our institution is also manual reduction unless bowel viability is poor. This study aimed to clarify the efficacy and safety of manual reduction followed by elective surgery. We retrospectively reviewed 50 cases of incarcerated obturator hernia from 2010 to 2022 at Iwate Prefectural Iwai Hospital. Manual reduction was attempted in 31 (62%) patients. The reduction was successful in 21 (42%) patients, and most of them received mesh repair using the extraperitoneal approach as elective surgery. However, two patients underwent emergent surgery in the waiting period because of late-onset constriction and a small bowel perforation. Patients with irreducible hernia underwent emergent surgery, except for two patients who received the best supportive care. Postoperative complications were observed in 5% and 22% of reducible and irreducible cases, respectively. Postoperative mortality was zero in both groups. Manual reduction is useful in some cases, but careful observation is needed because late-onset constriction and perforation could occur.

Subtotal Appendectomy to Treat Gangrenous Appendicitis Incarcerated in an Obturator Hernia.

Obturator hernias are quite rare in the world of hernias, and one that contains an acutely inflamed appendix becomes a very rare case indeed. An obturator hernia containing the appendix has been reported only 5 times in the surgical literature. Three of those cases were in elderly women with delayed presentations and were fatal. The most recent case was in a young woman with prompt laparoscopic appendectomy and no complications. We present a case in a 25-year-old man presenting with acute appendicitis and found to be incarcerated within the obturator canal during laparoscopy. The patient was treated with a 4-day course of postoperative antibiotics and a surgical drain that was later removed who had a full recovery. We conclude that the appropriate workup includes CT imaging and treatment with laparoscopic surgery for removal of the appendix.

Evaluation of 4-hand reduction for obturator hernia with the guidance of sonography as a new treatment strategy: A retrospective study.

To evaluate the effectiveness of 4-hand reduction for obturator hernia with the guidance of sonography (FROGS) as a new treatment strategy for obturator hernia. Since November 2019, FROGS was performed for all patients with obturator hernia at our emergency department. We retrospectively compared the clinical data of 20 patients who underwent FROGS (after FROGS group) to those of 23 patients who did not (before FROGS group). All patients except one were female. The male-to-female ratio, age, duration of symptoms, lesion site, and predisposing factors did not significantly differ between groups. However, the diameter of the prolapsed bowel and the body mass index of the after FROGS group were significantly larger and lower, respectively. Manual reduction was successfully performed for all 20 patients in the after FROGS group, and bowel resection was avoided for all 20 cases. However, 14 patients in the before FROGS group underwent manual reduction; of these, only one was successfully treated using a method other than FROGS, and 8 patients underwent bowel resection. There were no significant differences between groups in terms of postprocedural complications or mortality within 30 days of hernia presentation. The FROGS technique was safe and reproducible and could be used as the first choice of treatment for patients with obturator hernia.

Mechanical intestinal obstruction in underweight, elderly women due to an incarcerated obturator hernia.

BACKGROUND: Obturator hernia is an infrequent pelvic hernia observed in elderly, emaciated and multiparous women. It often presents with nonspecific clinical symptoms, making it difficult to diagnose. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective descriptive study on 11 patients admitted to our hospital for obturator hernia from 2009 to 2020. RESULTS: All the patients were diagnosed with intestinal obstruction due to incarcerated obturator hernia preoperatively. Eight patients underwent laparotomy with low midline incision. Laparoscopic approach was tried on the other three patients with two patients converting to open surgery because of inadequate visualization, and only one patient received laparoscopic repair. Of the 10 patients receiving laparotomy, seven cases received obturator hernia repair with a match and three cases were subjected to bowel resection (two cases intestinal necrosis and one case intestinal perforation). Simple peritoneal closure was performed on the three contaminated cases. One patient died of septic shock and multiple organ failure. CONCLUSION: The emergent computed tomography allow for early and precise diagnosis of incarcerated obturator hernia. Laparotomy with low midline incision is commonly used to manage obturator hernia in an emergency, whereas laproscopic approach may only apply to some selected cases.

A case of acute appendicitis incarcerated in obturator hernia.

An 85 year-old woman was transferred with a chief complaint of right thigh pain persisting for 5 days. Abdominal contrast-enhanced computed tomography clearly depicted a swollen appendix incarcerated in the right obturator cavity. She underwent an emergent laparoscopic appendectomy and the simultaneous repair of the obturator hernia. At laparoscopy, appendix was found to be incarcerated in the right obturator canal. The incarcerated appendix was successfully flushed out from the sac by spurting saline into the obturator hernia sac through the catheter inserted into the hernia sac. After a laparoscopic appendectomy, the hernia orifice was repaired using the uterine flap. The patient was discharged from the hospital without any sequelae. This report demonstrates a very rare case of obturator hernia incarcerated with appendix. Although patients with obturator hernia incarcerated with small intestine present with the symptoms related to bowel obstruction, patients with incarceration of appendix do not. Moreover, they would show no typical abdominal symptoms associated with acute appendicitis. Therefore, it is important to perform a radiological evaluation promptly to make a definitive diagnosis when a patient with persisting pain of the right thigh or right ileac fossa with a possibility of obturator hernia with incarceration of the appendix is encountered.

Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair for recurrent obturator hernia initially treated by open mesh plug repair: A case report with video.

An 80-year-old woman presented to our emergency department with vomiting which had begun half a day prior to presentation. She had undergone open mesh plug repair for a right obturator hernia 1 year prior to presentation. Computed tomography detected recurrence of the right obturator hernia. Since intestinal viability was maintained, manual reduction of the incarcerated intestine was performed. The patient was admitted to our department to monitor delayed intestinal perforation. Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair for obturator hernia was performed 5 days after admission. A self-fixating mesh was placed over the obturator hernia defect and femoral ring without tacking. The patient was discharged on postoperative day 6 without postoperative complications. At the 4-month follow-up, no signs of hernia recurrence or neuropathy were observed. Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair for recurrent obturator hernia status post-open mesh plug repair by using self-fixating mesh is a safe and suitable procedure.

Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal hernioplasty for bilateral obturator hernias and left inguinal hernia with emaciation caused by anorexia nervosa: A case report.

A 55-year-old woman receiving treatment for anorexia nervosa presented with abdominal pain and right thigh pain. Her body mass index was 12.9 kg/m2 . Computed tomography showed fluid storage in the distal side of the right obturator foramen and revealed a dilated small bowel without a starting point of obstruction. We diagnosed a naturally reduced incarcerated right obturator hernia and performed elective surgery with a laparoscopic approach for hernia repair the next day. Intraperitoneal observation revealed bilateral obturator hernias and a left direct-type inguinal hernia. Transabdominal preperitoneal hernioplasty was performed using two self-gripping polyester meshes for bilateral obturator hernia repair and a lightweight 3D-shaped mesh for left inguinal hernia repair. Women with emaciation caused by anorexia nervosa may be more likely to have complex hernias, including obturator hernia, and laparoscopic approaches may be useful for preoperatively diagnosed nonstrangulated obturator hernias.

The Feasibility and Potential Advantages of Laparoscopic Management of Incarcerated Obturator Hernia Over the Open Approach.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility and potential advantages of laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of incarcerated obturator hernia (IOH). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical data of 23 patients with IOH who underwent emergency surgery at our hospital from June 2015 to October 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. The clinical characteristics and surgery outcomes were compared between the laparoscopic group, open group, and the previously published data. RESULTS: Twelve patients with IOH were treated by laparoscopic management, while 11 patients with IOH underwent open surgery. There was no statistically significant difference in preoperative general data between the 2 groups, while the laparoscopic group had less intraoperative blood loss, shorter postoperative hospital stay, and lower postoperative complications compared with open group. Furthermore, when compared with the open group reported in previous literature, which showed similar conclusions. CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic surgery for IOH showed more favorable advantages including less intraoperative blood loss, shorter postoperative hospital stay, and lower postoperative complications compared with an open approach, which is a safe and feasible minimally invasive strategy and has certain advantages.

Laparotomy with suture repair is the most common treatment for obturator hernia: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Obturator hernias are rare and associated with high mortality. However, the optimal surgical approach remains unknown. We aimed to investigate the available evidence and examine the surgical details regarding obturator hernia defect closure as well as the recurrence rates of the different approaches. METHODS: We reported this scoping review according to the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis Extension for Scoping Reviews) and registered the protocol online. A comprehensive literature search in five different databases was conducted. The population was patients undergoing surgery for obturator hernia. Articles were included for data charting if the management of the hernia defect was reported. Data regarding surgical details, and hernia recurrence were extracted. RESULTS: A total of 1299 patients from 313 articles were included. In total, 937 patients underwent open obturator hernia repair, in which 992 hernias were repaired (including some bilateral obturator hernias). A total of 295 patients underwent laparoscopic repair for 341 obturator hernias, and for the remaining 67 patients, type of surgery was not reported. For open surgery, suture repair was the most common method of repair (n = 508, 51%) with a recurrence rate of 10%. For laparoscopic surgery, the most common repair of the defect was mesh repair (n = 299, 88%) with no reported recurrences. CONCLUSION: Open surgery with primary suture repair is the most common method of repair for obturator hernia but is associated with a recurrence rate of 10%. Laparoscopic mesh repair is becoming more common and have seemingly very low recurrence rates and may be a better method of repair.

Small Bowel Obstruction Due to Incarcerated Obturator Hernia: Successfull Surgical Management with Modified Mesh-Plug Hernioplasty.

BACKGROUND Obturator hernia is an uncommon (0.07-1% incidence rate) subtype of hernia of the abdominal wall, with its incarceration being a rare cause of bowel obstruction. Obturator hernia has a higher incidence in elderly women and in malnourished people. This type of hernia has the highest morbidity and mortality rates of all abdominal wall hernias. This article reports a case of an emaciated 93-year-old woman who presented with small bowel obstruction due to incarcerated obturator hernia, successfully managed surgically with a modified mesh-plug hernioplasty. CASE REPORT An emaciated 93-year-old woman presented with diffuse abdominal pain, more intense on the right iliac fossa, radiating to the right thigh, with 8-h evolution and associated with dark-colored vomiting but normal bowel transit. This patient had a surgical history of right Richter´s femoral hernia, strangulated, with previous intestinal resection and a right femoral hernioplasty. A computed tomography (CT) scan revealed an incarcerated obturator hernia on the right side containing a short segment of small intestine. The patient underwent an exploratory laparotomy and a mesh-plug hernioplasty. During follow-up, there was no evidence of recurrence or complications. CONCLUSIONS Obturator hernia diagnosis is challenging due to its rarity and its signs and symptoms being often unspecific. CT scan has the highest sensitivity and is the best diagnostic tool. Surgical management is the only possible treatment for obturator hernia. Awareness of this condition is essential to allow an earlier approach and attempt to mitigate the associated high morbidity and mortality rates.