Peritoneal closure and the processus vaginalis transection method to prevent inguinal hernia after robot-assisted radical prostatectomy.

OBJECTIVES: Postoperative inguinal hernia (IH) is one of the most common complications of radical prostatectomy (RP) including robot-assisted RP (RARP). However, a procedure to prevent IH after RARP has not been established. We investigated the impact of processus vaginalis transection (PVT) and PVT with peritoneal closure on IH after RARP. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on data from patients who underwent RARP at two tertiary hospitals in Japan, where PVT with subsequent peritoneal closure was introduced after 2014. The incidence of IH for 2 years after RARP was compared among 79 patients without PVT or peritoneal closure, 232 patients with only PVT, and 325 patients with PVT and peritoneal closure. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models that adjusted for hospital, age, history of abdominal operation, body mass index, operation time, and prostate weight were used. RESULTS: Postoperative IH was observed in seven (8.9%) patients without PVT or peritoneal closure, 34 (15%) patients with only PVT, and nine (2.8%) patients with PVT and peritoneal closure. Compared with patients without PVT or peritoneal closure, the incidence of IH was not different in patients with only PVT (hazard ratio [HR] 0.89, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.34, 2.38) and significantly lower in patients with PVT and peritoneal closure (HR 0.22, 95% CI 0.07, 0.70). CONCLUSION: PVT with peritoneal closure may reduce the risk of postoperative IH after RARP. Future randomized controlled trials are required to confirm these findings.