Incisional hernia following appendectomy. Surgical experience

Summary Appendectomy is a very frequent cause of incisional hernia. In this paper the rate of recurrence after the hernia repair by simple suture and mesh repair was studied. 17 lateral incisional hernias secondary to appendectomy were repaired over a 9 year period. Prosthetic repair was carried out in 9 cases and primary closure in the remaining 8 cases. All the patients were followed over a period that ranged from 1 to 8 years (mean 5.6 years). There was one recurrence, though 2 patients (11.7%) with mesh repair complained about abdominal pain during the first postoperative year. The study concludes that both techniques can be successfully implemented if the correct indications based on the extent of the defect and the clinical characteristics of the patient are respected.