Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair for strangulated inguinal hernia.

INTRODUCTION: Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair (TAPP) is widely accepted in elective inguinal hernioplasty. However, given the scarcity of data, the feasibility and safety of TAPP in strangulated hernia cases have not yet been determined. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated the data from a consecutive series of 33 patients who had undergone surgery for acute strangulated inguinal hernia associated with suspected visceral ischemic damage by either TAPP (TAPP group, n = 11) or conventional open hernioplasty via the anterior approach (anterior group, n = 22). RESULTS: The TAPP group had a significant longer surgical duration than the anterior group (147 vs 84 min) and relatively less blood loss. Incision and enlargement of the hernial orifice, which enables easy reduction of the strangulated organ, was performed in the last 7 of 11 cases in the TAPP group. The morbidity was lower in the TAPP group, but the difference was not statistically significant (18% vs 23%). The TAPP group had a significantly shorter postoperative hospital stay than the anterior group (7 vs 10 days). CONCLUSION: For surgeons with sufficient knowledge of the anatomy and expertise in reducing the strangulated organ, TAPP for strangulated inguinal hernia is at least comparable to open hernioplasty via the anterior approach in short-term outcomes.