Defining a Body Mass Index Threshold for Preventing Recurrence in Ventral Hernia Repairs

Body mass index (BMI) has been established as an independent risk factor for complications after abdominal hernia repairs. While various thresholds have been proposed, there is no consensus for an ideal BMI for elective hernia repair.

To identify the BMI threshold at which risk for hernia recurrence is significantly increased in patients undergoing ventral and incisional hernia repair.

This retrospective review of medical records included patients who underwent ventral or incisional hernia repairs from 2014 to 2020 at a single institution. Patients with hernia defects ≥4 cm were included. The primary outcome measure was hernia recurrence. Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis was used to determine the BMI threshold for recurrence. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to validate the threshold and to evaluate factors associated with recurrence.

Of the 175 patients included, 9.1% had a recurrence. Classification and Regression Tree analysis identified BMI 35.3 kg/m² as the critical threshold for hernia recurrence. In bivariate analysis, compared to patients who had no recurrence, patients with recurrence were more likely to have cirrhosis (12.5% vs 0%, P = .008), incarcerated hernias (75.0% vs 31.4%, P = .001), urgent surgery (75.0% vs 22.0%, P = <.001), biologic and no mesh use (25.0% vs 6.4% and 12.5% vs 5.7%, P = .012), and BMI >35.3 kg/m² (75.0% vs 25.8%, P < .001). In multivariate regression, only BMI >35.3 kg/m² was associated with recurrence [OR: 20.58 (95% CI: 2.17-194.87), P = .008].

Body mass index >35.3 kg/m² was the only independent factor associated with hernia recurrence. This highlights the importance of determining a BMI threshold for patients undergoing ventral or incisional hernia repair.