Background: Incisional hernias develop in 2 to 20% of laparotomy incisions. Approximately 100,000
ventral hernias are operated on each year in the United States. The reported recurrence rates for
open repair are 25–52% for primary and 12.5–19% for mesh repair. Compared to the open technique,
laparoscopic repair has low rates of complications and recurrence, greater patient acceptance,
and shorter hospital stay.
Materials and Methods: Between April 1999 and April 2004, we treated 150 patients (111 female,
39 male) with ventral and incisional hernias laparoscopically. Data concerning the age and sex of
patients, the location, number, and size of fascial defects, the type of hernias and their contents, the
size and type of meshes used in repair, operative time, length of hospital stay, and postoperative
complications were collected.
Results: Of the 150 patients, 92 had incisional hernias and 58 had umbilical hernias. Polypropylene
was used in 85 cases, dual mesh in 40 cases, and composite mesh in 25 cases. The mean age of
the patients was 56.0 years (range, 33–81 years). Mean operative time was 63 minutes (range, 30–125
minutes). Mean postoperative hospital stay was 2.5 days (range, 1–15 days). The postoperative complication
rate was 8.6% (seroma, paralytic ileus, small bowel injury, and suture-site neuralgia). The
mean follow-up period was 32 months (range, 4–60 months). There was a 3% recurrence rate. Three
subileus cases were detected during follow-up.
Conclusion: The laparoscopic approach to ventral and incisional hernias is safe, feasible, and a
good alternative to the open approach. Our results are comparable with those of other reports in
the literature.
