Laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair by modified peritoneal leaflet closure: Description and initial results in children.

INTRODUCTION: Inguinal hernias are common in infants and children. While the gold standard for hernia repair in the pediatric period has been via an open inguinal incision with dissection and high ligation of the hernia sac, over the past two decades laparoscopic herniorrhaphy has increased in popularity. The advantages of laparoscopy include decreased post-operative pain, improved cosmetic results, ability to easily assess the contralateral side for an open internal inguinal ring, and decreased risk of metachronous hernias. Herein, we describe a modified laparoscopic herniorrhaphy using a peritoneal leaflet closure and report our operative experience with intermediate-term results.
METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed our IRB-approved registry for all children who underwent initial laparoscopic herniorrhaphy at our tertiary care center over a 2.5-year period. All surgeries were performed by a single surgeon using a technique we have termed the peritoneal leaflet closure. This technique involves incising the peritoneum circumferentially around the open internal ring and developing peritoneal leaflets which are then closed together over the ring with a running non-absorbable barbed stitch (Figure). Intraoperative findings and complications, operative times, and post-operative complications were reviewed for all children.
RESULTS: A total of 50 initial laparoscopic hernia repairs (4 bilateral, 42 unilateral) were performed in 46 children (43 boys, 3 girls) at a median age of 5.9 years (range 0.5-16.7). Median operative time was 73 min (range 48-138) for unilateral and 106 min (range 104-135) for bilateral herniorrhaphy. No patient had an intraoperative complication. Two children (4%) had contralateral open rings discovered at time of surgery and underwent unplanned bilateral laparoscopic hernia repair. All patients went home on the same day as the procedure and three children (6%) had minor post-operative complaints (umbilical bulge, thigh pain, and urine holding) that all self-resolved. Thirty-nine children had follow-up data available. Intermediate-term complications occurred in two children (5%): one boy developed a contralateral hydrocele (despite a closed ring at surgery) and one boy had a hernia recurrence that required open repair. Overall, operative success with the modified peritoneal leaflet closure technique was therefore 97% (38 of 39 children with follow-up). All 37 boys who followed up had bilateral descended testes of normal size and consistency.
CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic herniorrhaphy using a peritoneal leaflet closure technique is safe and effective when used in infants and children to close an indirect hernia (i.e. patent processus vaginalis). No intraoperative complications occurred in this cohort and success rate was 97%.