Clinical Characteristics and Laparoscopic Treatment of Supravesical Hernia

Inguinal hernias may be direct or indirect, and supravesical hernias, a subtype of inguinal hernias, are often mistaken as direct hernias as their symptoms are similar. The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of supravesical hernias and to introduce a minimally invasive surgical method as a treatment for supravesical hernias.

Thirty-seven patients with supravesical hernias were treated using laparoscopic herniorrhaphy and wall defect suture with a mesh implant from September 2012 to December 2016 at Damsoyu hospital, Seoul, Korea. Patient characteristics and surgical outcomes were retrospectively evaluated.

All 37 patients were men with external supravesical hernias. The mean age was 55.3 (range 32-79) years; 23 patients had right-sided, 12 had left-sided, and 2 had bilateral hernias. Comorbidities included lipoma (7/37), contralateral indirect hernia (1/37), and contralateral direct hernia (14/37). No recurrences were reported at the end of the study period.

Laparoscopic transabdominal defect closure with a mesh implant herniorrhaphy seems to be an effective, minimally invasive treatment option for supravesical hernia.