Laparoscopic versus open repair of inguinal hernia: a longitudinal cohort study

Traditionally, repair of an inguinal hernia has been by an open method, but laparoscopic techniques have recently been introduced and are increasing in popularity. This study aimed to compare early and late outcomes following laparoscopic and open repair of inguinal hernia.

We performed an analysis of inpatient Hospital Episode Statistics. Early-outcome criteria studied include in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay, complications (infection, bleeding, injury to an organ, and urinary retention), and readmission. Late outcome was assessed by the need for a further inguinal hernia repair on the same side.

Between April 2002 and April 2004 there were 125,342 patients who underwent inguinal hernia repair and were included in the analysis. They were followed until April 2009. There were no differences in postoperative stay between the laparoscopic and open groups except for the laparoscopic bilateral hernia repair patients who had a shorter stay than the open group. Infection and bleeding were more common following open repair, whilst urinary retention and injury to an organ were more frequent after laparoscopic repair. Reoperation for another inguinal hernia was more common after laparoscopic (4.0 %) than after open repair of primary inguinal hernia (2.1 %), mostly in the first year after surgery. There was no difference in reoperation rate following repair of a recurrent inguinal hernia. Consultant caseload was strongly inversely correlated with reoperation following laparoscopic but not open repair of primary inguinal hernia.

Reoperation is more common after laparoscopic than after open repair of primary but not recurrent inguinal hernia. Surgeons with a low laparoscopic hernia repair caseload have an increased reoperation rate following laparoscopic repair of primary inguinal hernia. The increase in reoperation rate following laparoscopic repair is seen in the first year or two following the initial surgery.