Delayed ventral hernia repair worsens patients’ emotional and social health, impacting candidacy decisions. Patients reported decreased emotional and social well-being due to untreated hernias. Fear, uncertainty, and frustration from lack of autonomy were significant concerns. Surgical optimization should consider these psychosocial effects in shared decision-making. Addressing barriers to timely repair could improve overall patient satisfaction […]

Surgeons should note significant changes in costs following the January 2023 CMS reimbursement reform for ventral hernia repairs. Total episode spending decreased by $492 (7% reduction) compared to inguinal hernias. Professional reimbursements fell by $198 (20% reduction), while patient out-of-pocket costs decreased by $83 (10% reduction). Consider how these changes may affect surgical practice and […]

This study finds that functional status post-ventral hernia repair shows initial decline, with limited improvement over time. Among 127 patients, functional tests worsened at 4 weeks post-op, improving significantly only in the five times sit-to-stand test by 10 weeks and plateauing by 1 year. Timed up and go tests did not show long-term improvement. Track […]

Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) repair shows better outcomes than open Lichtenstein repair for inguinal hernias. TAPP patients experience significantly less postoperative pain on day 0 (1.75 points lower), day 1 (0.72 points lower), and week 1 (1.14 points lower). Lower risks with TAPP include surgical site infections (risk reduced by 64%), hematomas (risk reduced by […]

Using synthetic mesh for parastomal hernia repair reduces long-term recurrence risk compared to biologic mesh, which is crucial for surgical decision-making. Parastomal hernia recurrence rate at 5 years was 33.6% overall (37.5% for biologic vs. 29.4% for synthetic). Synthetic mesh showed a 45% reduction in recurrence risk (HR=0.65, p=0.028). Consider using synthetic mesh for better […]

Using synthetic mesh in contaminated ventral hernia repairs shows better long-term outcomes than biologic mesh, crucial for surgical decision-making. Midline hernia recurrence rate was 11.8% with synthetic mesh vs. 23.6% with biologic, translating to an 11.8% absolute risk reduction. No new mesh infections or excisions reported beyond 2 years; only 1.2% needed intervention for wound […]

A recent study shows that claims-based coding effectively tracks long-term complications after ventral hernia repair. Cumulative incidence of non-recurrence procedural intervention is 7.17% using claims data, compared to 5.54% with electronic health records. Reoperation for recurrence shows similar results: 6.84% for claims versus 7.00% for EHR. This coding method improves follow-up accuracy, aiding in patient […]

Preoperative CT parameters can help determine the need for transversus abdominis release (TAR) during laparoscopic repair of midline hernias. TAR was necessary in 57% of patients, correlating with hernia width >5 cm and rectus-to-defect ratio (RDR) <2.35. Patients needing TAR had hernias averaging 6 cm compared to 4 cm in those who didn’t (p<0.0001). This […]

Integrating geriatric medicine into abdominal wall reconstruction significantly improves outcomes for older patients. Older patients (≥65) receiving preoperative geriatric assessment had 4.7 days average hospital stay, compared to 6.7 days for those without. These patients experienced 3.2% wound complications versus 21% in the non-geriatric assessment group. Preoperative geriatric evaluations should be a standard practice for […]

Very elderly patients (76-90) show comparable outcomes to younger counterparts after ventral hernia repair. No differences in 30-day mortality, readmissions, or complications. Very elderly patients reported higher quality of life scores at baseline and significant improvements at 30 days and 1 year. Surgeons can confidently include very elderly patients in surgical plans, as they achieve […]