PP 32. Outcomes From Emergency Femoral Hernia Repair

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K. Guest, I. Nikolopoulos, A El Gaddal, D. Corry

18:16 - 18:22h at Margrit Room

Categories: Abdominal Wall and Hernia, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Poster Session

Session: Poster (P3) - Abdominal Wall & Hernia / Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery

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Background
Introduction: Femoral hernias (FH) are relatively uncommon, but remain a frequent cause of small bowel obstruction and strangulation, often necessitating emergency surgical intervention. The aim ofthis study is to investigate the outcomes of emergency femoral hernia repairs.

Material and Methods
Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of all patients that underwent an emergency Femoral Hernia repair between 2008 and 2013 at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in London.

Result
Results: A total of 37 patients underwent FH repair, with 27 operations (73%) being performed as emergencies (93% female). The median age was 83 years (34 – 93), median operative time was 85 minutes (25 – 205), median ASA score was 3 and median hospital length of stay was 5 days (1 – 57). There were 17 right-sided hernias (63%) and one bilateral which required small bowel resection on both sides. The majority of cases (70%) were performed using the Lockwood infra-inguinal approach, with senior surgical trainees conducting most operations (93%). Adverse intra-operative events were common, with 13 patients (48%) requiring a small bowel resection. Five patients had to be transferred to the Intensive Care Unit with cardiopulmonary complications and one patient (3.7%) died from aspiration pneumonia.

Conclusion
Conclusion: Femoral Hernias are associated with high rates of incarceration / strangulation and intestinal resection. Emergency surgery can increase the morbidity and mortality, especially in the elderly.