Abdominal wall hernia repair: a long-term comparison of Sepramesh and Dualmesh in a rabbit hernia model

Surgeons are faced with a wide variety of mesh products, which they can use to perform tension-free abdominal wall hernia repair. The purpose of this study is to compare Sepramesh (SM) and Dualmesh (DM) in terms of strength of tissue incorporation, mesh shrinkage, and adhesiogenesis. We conducted a prospective, randomized trial using 24 New Zealand White rabbits. Each animal underwent creation of a standardized ventral hernia defect and was randomized to receive either SM or DM repair. There were 12 animals in each study arm. Five months postoperatively, the animals were sacrificed and the hernia repairs were analyzed. Specimens were evaluated for strength of incorporation (SOI), mesh shrinkage, as well as the type and amount of adhesions. SOI for DM was not statistically different from SM (37.2N vs 40.8N). DM underwent significantly more shrinkage than did SM (50.8% vs 32.6%, P < 0.0001). Adhesions were predominantly omental in nature. DM demonstrated a greater amount of adhesed area as a percentage of the mesh (30.7% vs 25.2%), but fewer adhesions in terms of absolute area involved (636 mm2 vs 717 mm2). This difference was not statistically significant. Previous studies, terminated at 30 days, demonstrated an increased SOI for SM as compared to DM. This study shows that SOI for DM continues to increase over time such that it is equivalent to DM at 5 months. Though there is increased mesh shrinkage for DM, adhesions to the two materials are equivalent.