Association of pediatric inguinal hernia contents with patient age and sex.

BACKGROUND: Although pediatric inguinal hernia (IH) is a very common disease, systematic reviews of herniated organs are scarce. The current study aims to clarify the contents of pediatric IH using preoperative ultrasonography (US) in association with patient age, sex, and risk for developing irreducible/strangulated hernia. METHODS: The medical records of pediatric IH patients who underwent inguinal US examination prior to surgery between 2014 and 2019 were reviewed. Hernia contents were categorized into four groups based on US findings: bowel, omentum, ovary with or without fallopian tube, and ascites. RESULTS: A total of 524 IH lesions found in 220 men and 304 women were analyzed. The most common hernia content in patients under 12 months of age was the bowel (91.0%) in males and ovaries (89.5%) in females. The omentum became the most common herniated organ in both men (78.6%) and women (88.0%) aged 2 years and older. Emergency operations were performed in 3 patients (0.57%) due to irreducible IH, where 2 patients with irreducible ovaries, 5 and 7 months old, developed ovarian torsion and needed to undergo emergent salpingo-oophorectomy. CONCLUSIONS: The contents of pediatric IH depended on patient age and sex. Herniated ovaries in infants can twist in the hernia sac and become strangulated. It is important for clinicians to expect the herniated organ and take appropriate measures in the pediatric primary care setting.

Open Gastrostomy by Mini-Laparotomy: Our Method.

When percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) is not feasible owing to anatomical obstacles, laparotomic or laparoscopic gastrostomy (LAG) is an alternative. At our institution, LAG has been the first choice for patients who are unable to undergo PEG; however, we have introduced a small open gastrostomy through a 2-cm-long transverse incision since 2020. By December 2022, 12 patients had undergone this procedure without complications. In one case where the stomach was located cephalad to the rib arch and the patient had a round dorsum, the incision wound was extended, and a lengthy operation was required. We believe that our small-incision gastrostomy is a useful option in addition to LAG for cases in which PEG is difficult to perform. Further studies are required to determine the indications for this procedure.