Inguinal hernia mesh is safe in 1720 patients

Area of Science:

• Surgical outcomes research
• Patient-reported health outcomes
• Hernia repair techniques

Background:

• Growing public and patient interest in the safety of mesh for hernia repair.
• Limited data exists on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) following inguinal hernia repair (IHR) using mesh.
• This study addresses the need for comprehensive HRQOL data post-IHR with mesh.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate short-term and long-term postoperative quality of life outcomes in patients undergoing inguinal hernia repair (IHR) with mesh.
• To provide data on patient-reported outcomes following mesh-augmented hernia repair.
• To assess the impact of mesh on long-term patient well-being after IHR.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 1720 patients undergoing IHR with mesh (2008-2019).
• Prospective data collection using Surgical Outcomes Measurement System (SOMS) and Carolinas Comfort Scale (CCS) surveys.
• Preoperative and multiple long-term postoperative follow-ups (3 weeks to 5 years) with statistical analysis (p < 0.05).

Main Results:

• Low complication rates: 0.1% mesh infection, 9.2% seroma, 1.8% hematoma, 2.1% recurrence.
• Significant improvements in SOMS Pain Impact, Quality, and visual analog scale scores from pre- to 5-year postoperative.
• At 5 years, only 3.9% reported severe mesh sensation, 3.2% severe pain, and 3.1% severe movement limitation.

Conclusions:

• Inguinal hernia repair with mesh is associated with a low complication rate.
• A small proportion of patients experience severe symptoms at 5-year follow-up.
• Long-term follow-up indicates general improvement in pain impact and quality of life after mesh IHR.