Inguinal bladder hernia: four case analyses

A study of four cases presenting as inguinal bladder hernia was performed based on a review of the clinical presentation, circumstances of diagnostics, and surgical management. The mean age of patients was 66.5 years. Presenting symptoms included lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS; three cases) and decrease in scrotal size after voiding (one case). The diagnostic circumstances were incidental finding during investigation for urethral stricture (one case), preoperative discovery on the basis of decrease in scrotal size after voiding (one case), perioperative discovery during standard herniorrhaphy (one case), and peritoneal effusion secondary to bladder injury in the early postoperative period. All patients were managed successfully by replacement of the bladder in its original position and inguinal herniorrhaphy, the Lichtenstein technique (two cases), Shouldice repair (one case), or modified Bassini repair (one case) through the same inguinal incision. For one patient, bladder injury was diagnosed at the time of inguinal herniorrhaphy and repair was promptly made. For another, bladder injury was discovered only at surgical abdominal exploration. Surgical repair led to the resolution of signs and urologic symptoms in all but one patient who needed medical therapy for residual LUTS. An awareness of this possibility on the part of general surgeons should guide preoperative evaluation and therapy appropriately. Even if the preoperative diagnosis is missed, a perioperative diagnosis is crucial to avoid bladder injury during surgery.