Goni Moreno progressive preoperative pneumoperitoneum for giant hernias: a monocentric retrospective study of 162 patients

Goni Moreno's procedure was described 60 years ago as a solution for giant hernias repair through the creation of a progressive preoperative pneumoperitoneum (PPP). The main objective of the present study is to assess its effectiveness in terms of primary fascial closures. The secondary objectives of this study are to explore the morbidity and mortality associated with Moreno's procedure using 40 years of data from a large cohort of patients.

This is a retrospective study of all patients who underwent PPP procedures between October 1974 and January 2019 at the digestive surgery unit at Grenoble University Hospital, France. Data were reviewed to assess the preoperative demographic characteristics of the patients, procedure, postoperative course, complication following Clavien-Dindo classification and 30-day outcomes.

162 procedures were attempted. The mean age of patients was 57.8 years. 83 patients had a history of chronic respiratory disease (51.2%). The mean BMI was 33.2 kg/m², and 52 patients were obese (32.1%) Half of the patients were classified as ASA score III. Success rate of fascial closures was 95.7%. The global rate of complication during the insufflation period and after surgical repair of the hernia was 51.8% (n = 84). Among these, only 16.7% (n = 27) were major according to the Clavien-Dindo classification. The global mortality rate was 3.1%.

Goni Moreno PPP is an effective procedure that allows a high rate of fascial closure. The population of patients requiring such procedures presents a high-risk profile for complications regarding demographics and associated diseases.