[Causes of death and errors in the therapy of patients with strangulated hernias]

Among a group of 2,060 patients who underwent operation for strangulated abdominal hernias, 127 (6.2%) died. Analysis of the fatal outcomes showed that factors causing a negative effect on the results of treatment are essentially homogeneous. These included: a high proportion of elderly patients, late hospitalization, and the doctors' therapeutic and diagnostic errors. The percentage of the latter in the in-patient clinic is quite high (20.5). Immediate hospitalization of patients with a strangulated hernia and skilled operative treatment, as well as planned preventive management of individuals with hernia, are still the main reserve in improving the results of treatment of this pathological condition.