Single Incision Laparoscopic Percutaneous Extraperitoneal Closure of Internal Ring for Incarcerated Inguinal Hernia in Children: A Single Center Experience with 104 Cases

Introduction: The aim of this report is to present our technique and outcomes of single incision laparoscopic percutaneous extraperitoneal closure of internal ring (SILPEC) for incarcerated inguinal hernia (IIH) in children. Patients and Methods: The medical records of all children undergoing emergency SILPEC for IIH after unsuccessful attempted manual reduction between June 2016 and September 2020 at our center were reviewed. For SILPEC, two trocars 3.5–6 mm were placed through a single umbilical incision. A 17G epidural needle and a small wire–lasso were used for extraperitoneal closure of the internal ring. Results: From a total of 2904 consecutive patients with inguinal hernia (IH) undergoing SILPEC, 104 patients (3.6%) had IIH. There were 84 boys and 20 girls with a median age of 18.5 months (ranged 1 month to 11 years). At the time of surgery under general anesthesia IIH was found to be spontaneously reduced in 26.9%; the hernia contents were bowel in 52.9%, great omentum in 13.5%, and ovary in 6.7% of the patients. All hernias were successfully reduced without additional ports or conversion to open surgery. Patent contralateral processus vaginalis (PCPV) was detected intraoperatively in 44.2% of the cases. The median operative time was 24 minutes for unilateral and 30 minutes for bilateral procedures. The median postoperative stay was 1 day. At a median follow-up of 28 months, there was no case of hydrocele, testicular atrophy, or iatrogenic cryptorchism. The postoperative cosmesis was excellent as all patients were virtually scarless. Recurrence occurred in 1.9% with no significant difference ( P = .669) compared to the 1.4% recurrence rate of the 2800 patients with ordinary IH undergoing elective SILPEC during the same study period. Conclusions: SILPEC for IIH in children is feasible, safe, with excellent postoperative cosmesis, and no significant difference in hernia recurrence between emergency SILPEC for IIH and elective SILPEC for ordinary IH.