Reliability of Hem-o-Lok clip in laparoscopic appendectomy is an uncharted territory

Laparoscopic appendectomy is increasingly used in the treatment of acute appendicitis. We aimed in the present report to evaluate the reliability of the Hem-o-Lok clip used in appendix stump capping for occluding orifice .

In this study, sequential laparoscopic appendectomy cases, in whom Hem-o-Lok clips was employed, in a single center between January 2017 and June 2020 because of acute appendicitis were retrospectively analyzed.

The study was completed with a total of 305 cases who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy with hem-o-lok clips within the specified date range. There were no intraoperative complications in any of the cases. The number of women was 94 (30.8%) and the number of men was 211 (69.2%). The average age was 32.7 years. There were 275 (90.2%) patients without appendix perforations and 30 (9.8%) patients with perforations.Postoperative complications occurred in 13 patients. Surgical site infection in five patients, mechanical intestinal in two patients, intraabdominal abscess in five patients, and hematoma at the trocar entry site in one patient were observed. There were no intraoperative complications in any of the patients.

Hem-o-Lok clip can be applied safely in laparoscopic appendectomy for the capping of the appendix stump, with its easy-to-use and low-cost features.

Acute appendicitis, Laparoscopic appendectomy, Hem-o-lok clip.