O27 THE IMPACT OF NERVE MANAGEMENT ON THE RISK FOR PERSISTING POSTOPERATIVE PAIN FOLLOWING OPEN ANTERIOR MESH REPAIR OF INGUINAL HERNIA

Aim The impact of peripheral nerve management on post-operative pain is poorly known. The aim was to evaluate how management of the inguinal nerves during anterior mesh hernia repair affects the risk for long-term postoperative pain. Material and Methods Cross-sectional study based on the Swedish Hernia Register (SHR). Includes patients over 18 years of age with an open anterior repair during 2012-2018, who responded to a one-year follow-up questionnaire regarding pain. Ordered logistic regression analysis was applied to determine risk factors for pain. Results In total 35,720 patients who were operated with anterior mesh repair responded to the PROM questionnaire. Overall, 15.6% reported pain interfering with daily activities. The risk for persisting groin pain one year after surgery was not impacted by transecting the iilioingiounal nerve (0.49), the iliohypogastric nerve (0.17) or the genital branch of the genotiofemoral nerve (0.25) in a multivariable ordinal regression adjusting for anaesthesia, gender, age and emergency surgery. Conclusions Intraoperative management of the three main inguinal nerves was not associated with the risk for persisting pain in the operated groin one year after surgery.