A comparative study of the single-site laparoscopic herniorrhaphy using needle instruments and double-site laparoscopic herniorrhaphy in the minimally invasive treatment of inguinal hernias in children

The clinical effect of the single-site laparoscopic herniorrhaphy (SSLH) using needle instruments and double-site laparoscopic herniorrhaphy (DSLH) in the treatment of inguinal hernias in children were compared. A total of 1,010 children with inguinal hernias who were treated in Chao-Yang Hospital from March 2011 to December 2014 were selected. According to the operation method, these children were divided into the single-site group using needle instruments (n=508) and the traditional double-site group (n=502). The clinical indexes of the two groups were compared. All the clinical indexes (operation time, intraoperative blood loss, time of off-bed and discharge time) in the single-site group using needle instruments were significantly lower than those in the traditional double-site group (P<0.001, <0.001, <0.001 and <0.003, respectively), but the incidence rates of postoperative complications and contralateral occult hernia were at the similar level (P=0.249 and 0.221, respectively), so the difference was statistically insignificant. Patients in the two groups were followed up for 2 years and there was no recurrece in children in the single-site group while there was 2 in the double-site group. The SSLH using needle instruments is more effective with fewer traumas in the treatment of inguinal hernias in children than the DSLH. It is easier for children to recover from the herniorrhaphy with no scars, so it conforms more closely to the concept of minimally invasive herniorrhaphy, which can be promoted and applied for the treatment of inguinal hernias in children.