Chronic pain after hernia surgery--an informed consent issue

Chronic severe pain following inguinal hernia repair is a significant post-operative problem. Its exact cause and lack of evidence-based treatment path present problems in the effective management of this surgical complication. We retrospectively reviewed the records of patients diagnosed with chronic pain following open inguinal hernia repair between November 1995 and November 2000, who were under the care of the senior author. Over the five-year period, 146 patients underwent inguinal hernia repair. 88 (60%) had suture repair (darn & modified Bassini's) and 58 (40%) underwent a Lichtenstein mesh repair. Thirteen patients (9%), (3 in suture vs. 10 in mesh group, p = 0.004) developed chronic severe pain. Examination revealed maximal tenderness over the genitofemoral nerve (GF) distribution (n = 5), over the medial end of the scar (n = 3), over the pubic tubercle (n = 1) and in the ilioinguinal nerve distribution (n = 1) No abnormality was detected on clinical examination in the cases of three patients. Treatment involved GF nerve block (n = 5), local injection of Chirocaine and Methylprednisolone acetate into the medial end of the scar (n = 3), Chirocaine and Methylprednisolone acetate into the pubic tubercle (n = 1), ilioinguinal nerve block (n = 1), re-exploration with re-suturing of the mesh (n = 1), and Amitriptyline (n = 2). At a median follow up of 45 months (range: 24-87), 10 (77%) are completely pain free; two (15.4%) had mild pain and one patient still has significant persistent pain. To conclude, chronic severe pain occurred in nine percent of patients following primary open inguinal hernia repair. The majority of patients were successfully treated by therapeutic injection into the point of maximal tenderness.