Inguinal herniotomy in young infants, with emphasis on premature neonates.
Over a period of 6 years, 251 infants under 6 months of age underwent repair of inguinal hernias (IH; n = 311). There were 241 males and 10 females. Incarceration occurred in 59 infants (24%), one of whom had bilateral incarceration. As a result of the authors' policy to operate on infantile IH within 7 days of diagnosis, only 6% of the incarcerations occurred in already diagnosed cases. Sedation and taxis did not reduce the hernia in 22 cases (38%); transperitoneal closure of the internal ring was performed in 14 of these. Eighty-nine infants (36%) were born premature; thirty-nine (41%) of these had been ventilated before, a possible cause of the hernia. Bilateral presentation was more common in the premature infants (35% v 17%); surprisingly, incarceration was less common (13% v 24%). Hence, the policy of delaying herniotomy until discharge from the neonatal unit was justified. During follow-up, six recurrences were noted and two cases of testicular atrophy.
Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Ireland.
D
D
Misra
G
G
Hewitt
S R
SR
Potts
S
S
Brown
V E
VE
Boston
D005260:Female; D006552:Hernia, Inguinal / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies