[Hiatal hernia : current diagnostic and therapeutic management]

Hiatal hernia is a frequent pathology. Two types have been described : sliding hernia and paraesophageal hernia (PEH). The first one is the most frequent and is associated with reflux disease. Patients with PEH have a large variety of symptoms, such as chest pain, dyspnea, regurgitation, iterative pneumonia and iron-deficiency anemia. Operative management is necessary for sliding hernia with reflux disease and for symptomatic PEH, respectively. In patients with asymptomatic PEH, operative risk must be balanced with the risk of postoperative complications. No specific operative technique has been validated so far as surgical standard. Several technical details are important and technique has to be adapted according to the size and type of hernia, preoperative symptoms and patient's comorbidities.