Open AccessPosttraumatic Transdiaphragmatic Intercostal Hernia: Report of a Case and Review of the Literature
Author(s) -
Vasileios Kalles,
Maria Dasiou,
Georgia Doga,
Ioannis Papapanagiotou,
Evangelos Konstantinou,
Α. Mekras,
Theodoros MariolisSapsakos,
Nikolaos Anastasiou
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
international surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.132
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 2520-2456
pISSN - 0020-8868
DOI - 10.9738/intsurg-d-13-00272.1
Subject(s) - medicine , surgery , intercostal muscle , intercostal nerves , hernia , abdominal wall , thoracic wall , surgical mesh , rib cage , ascending colon , radiology , anatomy , respiratory system
Intercostal hernias are rare, and usually occur following injuries of the thoracic wall. The scope of this report is to present a case of a 53-year-old obese patient that developed a transdiaphragmatic intercostal hernia. The patient presented with a palpable, sizeable, reducible mass in the right lateral thoracic wall, with evident bowel sounds in the area, 6 months after a motor-vehicle accident. On computed tomography (CT), the hernia sac contained part of the liver and part of the ascending colon. A surgical repair of the defect was performed, using a prosthetic patch. The patient's postoperative course was uneventful and she remains recurrence free at 12 months after surgery. Intercostal hernias should be suspected following high-impact injuries of the thoracic wall, and CT scans will facilitate the diagnosis of intercostal hernia. We consider the surgical repair of the defect, with placement of a prosthetic mesh, as the treatment of choice to ensure a favorable outcome.