Older and more experienced surgeons have distinct effects on complications in ventral hernia repairs.

• Open repairs: Higher surgeon age linked to greater recurrence (OR 7.1), but lower severe complications (OR 0.5).
• Robotic repairs: Aging surgeons face increased odds of recurrence and reoperation, while experience reduces those risks significantly.

Consider tailored training to enhance patient outcomes, especially for older surgeons in high-recurrence procedures.

• Laparoscopic repairs show no age effect on recurrence, but experienced surgeons have a higher recurrence rate (OR 3.5) yet lower reoperation odds (OR 0.2).