Comparison of long-term outcomes of laparoscopic percutaneous internal ring suturing and classic open approach for inguinal hernia repair in children.

Introduction: Inguinal hernia repair is one of the most common surgeries in children. Recently, the use of minimally invasive techniques for inguinal hernia repair has increased in children. Laparoscopic percutaneous internal ring suturing (PIRS) is a technique described for paediatric inguinal hernia repair. The primary objective of this study is to demonstrate the efficacy and reliability of PIRS in paediatric patients through a comparative analysis with an open method.

Methods: Between January 2017 and June 2023, records of patients who underwent surgery for inguinal hernia were retrospectively reviewed. In total 126 patients were included in the study. They were divided into two groups: 33 patients underwent PIRS (group 1) and 93 patients underwent open repair (group 2). Operation time, cost and complications were compared.

Results: The mean age of the 126 patients was 3.23 ± 2.4 years. The mean unilateral operative time was 25.13 ± 5.32min in group 1 and 30.28 ± 4.73min in group 2, and there was a statistically significant difference in operative time (p < 0.001). Two patients in group 1 underwent surgery owing to patent processus vaginalis, whereas three patients in group 2 underwent surgery owing to metachronous hernia. There were no major complications such as bleeding requiring surgical intervention or conversion to an open approach during surgery in group 1. No recurrent hernia was observed in any of the 126 patients.

Conclusions: PIRS offers a safe, easy-to-learn method with low complication rates. PIRS has a distinct advantage over open surgical repair because of its capacity to evaluate the contralateral inguinal ring.