Contralateral inguinal hernia in childhood and youth: which child will develop a contralateral inguinal hernia?

Metachronous Contralateral Occurrence of Hydrocele After Unilateral Hydrocelectomy in Children Younger Than 8 Years

BACKGROUND

Hydrocele on the contralateral side after surgical repair is an uncommon condition compared to surgical site recurrence. Although there has been much research on metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia in children, metachronous contralateral hydrocele, which share a common pathology with inguinal hernias, has not yet been investigated. We have investigated the incidence and risk factors for metachronous contralateral occurrence of communicating and noncommunicating hydroceles in children younger than 8 years.

METHODS

From January 2017 to June 2020, 302 children younger than 8 who were diagnosed with unilateral hydroceles were treated in our hospital without surgical exploration of contralateral hydrocele. The disease was classified into communicating and noncommunicating hydroceles. We divided patients into two groups according to the presence of metachronous contralateral hydrocele and analyzed the differences between the two groups.

RESULTS

Among 302 patients, the mean age was 36.4 ± 20.9 months. Metachronous contralateral hydrocele occurred in 15 (4.9%) patients as communicating hydroceles. Comparison between the two groups showed statistically significant differences in type of hydrocele (P = 0.047) at first diagnosis.

CONCLUSION

Clinically evident risk of metachronous contralateral hydrocele after unilateral hydrocelectomy was 4.9%. Despite the relatively low incidence rate, the risk of metachronous contralateral occurrence should always be consulted with parents before surgical treatment of hydroceles.

The Operative Time for Unilateral Inguinal Hernia Repair in Children Performed with Percutaneous Internal Ring Suturing (PIRS) or Open Approach Method

In this study, we compared the operative time for unilateral inguinal hernia repair in children performed with either an open approach (OA) or the Percutaneous Internal Ring Suturing (PIRS) method. It was a retrospective chart review of all patients ages 0 to 18 who underwent unilateral inguinal hernia repair in the Department of Pediatric Surgery, Urology and Traumatology of the Regional Hospital in Kielce between January 2011 and December 2018. Patients with bilateral hernias or additional problems were excluded. Of 878 patients qualified for the study, 701 were in the OA group and 177 in the PIRS group. Overall, the time needed to complete the procedure was significantly longer for the OA method. The operative time was longer if the hernia was left-sided (p = 0.024). Analysis by gender showed that operative time was generally longer in males. For both genders, surgery was shorter if the PIRS method was used. For males in the PIRS group the operative time was affected by the location of the hernia, and it was longer for a left-sided hernia. The take-home message is that the PIRS procedure is faster than the OA for inguinal hernia repair in children and it might be considered as a preferred method, especially in females.

Current concepts in the management of inguinal hernia and hydrocele in pediatric patients in laparoscopic era

The surgical repair of inguinal hernia and hydrocele is one of the most common operations performed in pediatric surgery practice. This article reviews current concepts in the management of inguinal hernia and hydrocele based on the recent literature and the authors׳ experience. We describe the principles of clinical assessment and anesthetic management of children undergoing repair of inguinal hernia, underlining the differences between an inguinal approach and minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Other points discussed include the current management of particular aspects of these pathologies such as bilateral hernias; contralateral patency of the peritoneal processus vaginalis; hernias in premature infants; direct, femoral, and other rare hernias; and the management of incarcerated or recurrent hernias. In addition, the authors discuss the role of laparoscopy in the surgical treatment of an inguinal hernia and hydrocele, emphasizing that the current use of MIS in pediatric patients has completely changed the management of pediatric inguinal hernias.

Incidence of metachronous contralateral inguinal hernias in children following unilateral repair - A meta-analysis of prospective studies

PURPOSE

The objective of this review was to systematically evaluate the incidence of a metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia (MCIH) in children with unilateral inguinal hernia and therefore to propose or to reject routine contralateral groin exploration.

METHODS

Electronic searches restricted to prospective studies with a minimal follow-up of 1year included MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials.

RESULTS

Six studies involving 1669 children were included. Overall MCIH was 6% (95% CI from 4% to 8%). The odds for MCIH development were significantly larger in children with an initial left-sided hernia (OR 2.66 with 95% CI from 1.56 to 4.53) and in children with open contralateral processus vaginalis (CPV) (OR 4.17 with 95% CI from 1.25 to 13.9).

CONCLUSIONS

The overall incidence of MCIH following unilateral inguinal hernia repair in children is 6%. Initial left-sided hernia (8.5%) and open CPV (13.8%) are risk factors for MCIH development. Female gender (8.2%) and younger age (<1year) (6.9%) non-significantly increase the risk of MCIH.

Laparoscopic versus open inguinal hernia repair in pediatric patients: a systematic review

AIM

Inguinal hernia is one of the most common surgical conditions in infants and children. However, considerable debate exists regarding the role of laparoscopic hernia repair (herniorrhaphy) (LH) and its benefits over conventional open hernia repair (herniorrhaphy) (OH). The aim of this review is to analyze the current literature to determine the outcome of LH compared with OH.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A literature search was performed on all studies published during the last 20 years, reporting on outcomes of OH and LH, in terms of operative time, recurrence rate and other complications, finding of rare hernias, and incidence of contralateral patency. The chi-squared or Fisher's exact test was used to analyze the results of the study.

RESULTS

Fifty-three studies matched our inclusion criteria. As for operative time, in unilateral inguinal hernia repair, there was no significant difference between LH and OH (P=.33). In contrast, in bilateral disease, LH is faster than OH (P=.01). As for the recurrence rate, no significant difference was observed between the two techniques (P=.66), whereas the rate of other complications was significantly higher for OH compared with LH (P=.001). Laparoscopy has the advantage to identify and treat rare hernias (direct, femoral, "en pantalon") that are never reported in articles focused on inguinal OH. In laparoscopic series, in the case of unilateral hernia, the incidence of contralateral patency varied between 19.9% and 66%.

CONCLUSIONS

In this systematic review, it seems that LH is faster than OH for bilateral hernias, whereas there is no significant difference in terms of operative time for unilateral inguinal hernia repair. Recurrence rate is similar for both techniques. As for other complications such as wound infections, it is higher for OH compared with LH, especially in infants. A prospective comparative study is necessary on this topic to strongly support the results of our systematic review.

Analysis of 3,776 pediatric inguinal hernia and hydrocele cases in a tertiary center

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

This study describes the pediatric inguinal hernia and hydrocele experience of a tertiary care training hospital.

METHODS

A total of 3776 patients who had been operated between January 2005 and June 2009 for inguinal hernia, cord hydrocele, and hydrocele were included. The surgeries and patient follow-up were performed by 6 pediatric surgery specialists and 8 pediatric surgery residents.

RESULTS

The patient age varied from 6 days to 17 years. There were 2959 (78.4%) males and 817 (21.6%) females (ratio: 3.6:1). The hernia was on the right in 2306 (61.1%) patients, on the left in 1111 (29.4%) patients, and bilateral in 359 (9.5%) patients. Age at presentation was younger in males (p<.001). Contralateral hernia repair was required later on during follow-up in 2% of the patients. Postoperative complications developed in 1.2% of the patients. Reoperation was needed because of wound infection in 0.6%, recurrence in 0.4%, hematoma in 0.1%, testicular atrophy in 1 patient, and acquired undescended testis in 1 patient.

CONCLUSIONS

The age of first hernia symptoms was younger in males compared to females and in premature babies compared to term babies (p<.05). The recurrent hernia rate was higher in infancy. The complication rate was higher in hernia surgery in the newborn period and in cases of incarcerated hernia compared to the overall rate (p<.05). There was no indication for contralateral routine exploration.

Incidence of pediatric metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia in children aged ≥1 year

BACKGROUND

The management of the contralateral asymptomatic side when a child with initial unilateral inguinal hernia undergoes herniorrhaphy continues to be controversial. Age less than 6 months at initial herniorrhaphy is considered as a high risk factor of the occurrence of metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia (MCIH). We performed herniorraphy for patients ≥1 year with initial unilateral hernia at one-day-set outpatient-surgery department without any intervention of contralateral groin. In this study, we reviewed the characteristics of development of MCIH in this condition and discuss the management strategies of MCIH.

METHODS

The subjects of this study were children who were treated at our outpatient-surgery department from January 2006 to December 2006. A total of 2129 patients with initial unilateral hernia and aged ≥1 year underwent an ipsilateral herniorhhaphy only. Patients were followed up for the development of MCIH to 60 months. The Chi-square test was used for intergroup comparison, a level of P<0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

RESULTS

Among these children 1341 (63.0%) were obtained 60 months follow-up data, 1146 (85.5%) were boys and 195 (14.5%) were girls. MCIH developed in 70 (5.2%) patients, 61 were boys and 9 were girls. In 570 patients aged 12-23 months, 43 developed MCIH (7.5%); in 564 patients aged 24-59 months, 21 developed MCIH (3.7%); and in 207 patients ≥60 months, 6 patients developed MCIH (2.9%), the difference between these groups was highly significant (P=0.004). In male patients, 30 right-sided MCIHs occurred after 423 initial left-sided herniorrhaphies (7.1%) and 31 left-sided MCIHs occurred after 723 initial right-sided herniorrhaphies (4.3%), difference between these two groups was significant (P=0.041). Seventy-seven percent of the MCIHs occurred within 1 year, 94% occurred within 2 years after initial herniorraphy.

CONCLUSIONS

As the overall incidence of MCIH in patients aged ≥1 year was 5.2%, routine contralateral groin exploration is not suggested. Transinguinal laparoscopy could be considered as an alternative of conventional "wait and see" policy, especially in patients less than 2 years or left-sided initial unilateral inguinal hernia. If "wait and see" policy is adopted, patients should be closely followed up for 2 years.

Systematic review for paediatric metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia: a decreasing concern

PURPOSE

Controversy still surrounds the treatment of the asymptomatic inguinal region in paediatric patients with a unilateral inguinal hernia. The concern is the development of a future metachronous contralateral inguinal hernia (MCIH) and therefore the need for a second operation. Our aim was to provide a current systematic review of the evidence for routine contralateral exploration, and identify potential at-risk groups.

METHODS

Comprehensive review of the literature utilising broad search terms to identify all relevant publications. Precise inclusion and exclusion criteria to identify studies that included paediatric unilateral inguinal hernia repair without routine contralateral exploration.

DATA ANALYSIS

Chi-square with Yates' correction or a Fisher's exact test as appropriate. Numbers needed to treat (NNT) calculated with 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS

A total of 7,130 titles and abstracts were screened and 61 studies included with data on 49,568 paediatric patients with a unilateral inguinal hernia fulfilling the inclusion criteria. 2,857 of these patients later developed a MCIH, revealing an overall risk is 5.76% (95% CI: 5.55-5.97%). The NNT for a MCIH is 18 (95% CI: 16.8-18) with 18 contralateral exploration required for the prevention of one MCIH. Patients <6 months at the time of the initial intervention were more likely to develop a MCIH; 183/1,470 (<6/12) versus 144/2,044 (≥6/12), P < 0.0001. As were patients with an original left-sided hernia; 815/6,739 versus 865/12,615, P < 0.0001. The NNTs for both of these groups were 9. There was no association with the gender of the patient; 888/14,480 (♂) versus 268/4,206 (♀), P = 0.37.

CONCLUSIONS

There is insufficient evidence to support the routine contralateral inguinal exploration in all paediatric patients presenting with a unilateral inguinal hernia. However, with patients presenting with an originally left-sided hernia or who are less than 6 months old, a parental discussion should occur about the possible benefits and risks of contralateral exploration.