Baukje van den Heuvel1, J A van Jarwaarde2, P Wichers2, E S M de Lange de Klerk3, H J Bonjer4, B J Dwars2. 1. General Surgery, Slotervaart Hospital, Louwesweg 6, 1066 EC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. baukjevdh@yahoo.com. 2. General Surgery, Slotervaart Hospital, Louwesweg 6, 1066 EC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 3. Epidemiology & Biostatistics, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 4. General Surgery, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The most important long-term complications after inguinal hernia repair are chronic pain and recurrence. Previous follow-up studies showed that physical examination is the only reliable method of follow-up to detect recurrences. However, physical examination is laborious and time consuming. We designed a telephone questionnaire as a method of follow-up after laparoscopic inguinal hernia surgery; the PINQ-PHONE (Post-INguinal-repair-Questionnaire by telePHONE). The aim of this study is to validate the PINQ-PHONE for detecting both asymptomatic and symptomatic recurrences. METHODS: This prospective study contained 300 randomly selected patients after laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair. All patients were contacted by telephone and the PINQ-PHONE was carried out. The PINQ-PHONE contains four elements; three questions and a do-it-yourself Valsalva maneuvre. Subsequently, all patients were seen in clinic and physical examination (gold standard) was done. RESULTS:The majority (96 %) was male and the mean age was 66 (range 26-93) years old. The mean interval between surgery and study inclusion was 58 (range 6-141) months. In five (1.7 %) patients, a recurrence was found. All of them replied positively to one or more elements of the PINQ-PHONE. Two-hundred-fifty-two (84 %) patients replied negatively to all elements and none of them had a recurrence. The overall sensitivity was 1.00 and the overall specificity was 0.86. CONCLUSION: This study validated the PINQ-PHONE. It is a reliable, practical, and simple method of follow-up after laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair to detect both symptomatic and asymptomatic recurrences.
RCT Entities:
BACKGROUND: The most important long-term complications after inguinal hernia repair are chronic pain and recurrence. Previous follow-up studies showed that physical examination is the only reliable method of follow-up to detect recurrences. However, physical examination is laborious and time consuming. We designed a telephone questionnaire as a method of follow-up after laparoscopic inguinal hernia surgery; the PINQ-PHONE (Post-INguinal-repair-Questionnaire by telePHONE). The aim of this study is to validate the PINQ-PHONE for detecting both asymptomatic and symptomatic recurrences. METHODS: This prospective study contained 300 randomly selected patients after laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair. All patients were contacted by telephone and the PINQ-PHONE was carried out. The PINQ-PHONE contains four elements; three questions and a do-it-yourself Valsalva maneuvre. Subsequently, all patients were seen in clinic and physical examination (gold standard) was done. RESULTS: The majority (96 %) was male and the mean age was 66 (range 26-93) years old. The mean interval between surgery and study inclusion was 58 (range 6-141) months. In five (1.7 %) patients, a recurrence was found. All of them replied positively to one or more elements of the PINQ-PHONE. Two-hundred-fifty-two (84 %) patients replied negatively to all elements and none of them had a recurrence. The overall sensitivity was 1.00 and the overall specificity was 0.86. CONCLUSION: This study validated the PINQ-PHONE. It is a reliable, practical, and simple method of follow-up after laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair to detect both symptomatic and asymptomatic recurrences.
Authors: Hester R Langeveld; Martijne van't Riet; Wibo F Weidema; Laurents P S Stassen; Ewout W Steyerberg; Johan Lange; Hendrik J Bonjer; Johannes Jeekel Journal: Ann Surg Date: 2010-05 Impact factor: 12.969
Authors: Lava Y Patel; Brittany Lapin; Matthew E Gitelis; Craig Brown; John G Linn; Stephen Haggerty; Woody Denham; Zeeshan Butt; Ermilo Barrera; Ray Joehl; JoAnn Carbray; Tyler Hall; Michael B Ujiki Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2016-09-01 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: L Tastaldi; P H F Barros; D M Krpata; A S Prabhu; S Rosenblatt; C C Petro; H Alkhatib; L A Szutan; R A Silva; M A Olson; T G Stewart; S Roll; M J Rosen; B K Poulose Journal: Hernia Date: 2019-07-29 Impact factor: 4.739