INGUINAL HERNIA REPAIR

Objective: To evaluate early results of laparoscopic repair of inguinal hernia by totally extraperitoneal approach (TEP) performed.Setting: At Surgical unit III, Jinnah hospital Lahore. Period: From August 2005 to July2008. Methods: 97 patients over the age of 30 yearsunderwent TEP repair of their inguinal hernia. Post operative assessment of the patients included pain score assessment and analgesiarequirement, along with ability to walk upright comfortably, time taken to return to normal activity and early complications like seroma,haematoma, infection etc. Results: Post-operative pain assessment at 8 hours after surgery showed 43(44.3%) patients required extraanalgesia while 24 hours after surgery only 13(13.4%) patients required extra analgesia. Mean operative time was 95 min (range 55-130min)for unilateral hernia. However, as experience increased with TEP repair, mean operating time decreased to 75mins in the second half of thecases. 21(20.6%) patients at 24hrs and 51(52.6%) patients at 48hrs could walk upright without any help. Median period for return to normalactivity at domestic level was 5days (range 3-23).Incidence of early complications is shown in table-Ill. Conclusion: Our results of TEPlaparoscopic hernia repair are comparable to European experience in terms of postoperative pain, mobility of patient and rehabilitation, as wellas early complications.