Commercial polyester/cotton fabric (Damour): a novel prosthetic material for hernioplasty in ruminants

The aim of this work was to study the possibility of using a new commercial polyester/cotton fabric to repair large sized umbilical and abdominal hernias in calves and small ruminants. Twenty-four animals (16 calves, 3 buffalo calves, 4 sheep, 1 goat) with umbilical or abdominal hernia were included in this study. The diameter of hernial ring ranged from (12-25) cm. An underlay technique was used for fixation of the prosthetic material that was placed under the visceral peritoneum after omentopexy and was secured to the recipient tissue with interrupted overlapped pattern using polypropylene monofilament suture material. After one year follow up, normal healing without complications in 19 animals was revealed (79.82%). Wound infection and delayed healing were recorded in 3 animals (12.5%) and wound dehiscence and re-herniation were observed in 2 cases (8.3%). In conclusion, our results suggested that commercial polyester/cotton fabric (Damour) represents a new cost effective alternative to commonly used meshes for hernioplasty of large sized hernias with relatively low rate of complications and recurrence in calves and small ruminants.