Modified 2-port laparoscopic herniorrhaphy with Kirschner wire in children: A retrospective review

BACKGROUND: Pediatric inguinal hernia is one of the most common diseases in children, and laparoscopy is the main surgical method. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of a new modified 2-port laparoscopic herniorrhaphy with Kirschner wire (TLHK) for inguinal hernia in children. METHODS: A total of 5304 children with inguinal hernia hospitalized at the Jiangmen Center Hospital from June 2003 to May 2016 were enrolled in this retrospective study. Four thousand one hundred thirty-five children underwent TLHK that comprised the observation group, while 1169 received single incision laparoscopy (SIL) as the control group (CG). A propensity score matched cohort study was conducted between these groups. We included all patients who were diagnosed as inguinal hernia and matched comparators with a proportion of 1:1. The propensity score was calculated using logistic regression with forward stepwise selection in 4 variables. The patients’ operative details, intra- and postoperative complications, and postoperative hospital stay were analyzed. The follow-up lasted from 1 month to 2 years. RESULTS: Among 5304 potential patients, the propensity score identified 270 (135 TLHK cases and 135 comparators) patients. The age, sex, body mass index, and the hernia type and location did not differ between CG and TLHK. TLHK group had a shorter operative time (unilateral: 17.4 ± 3.35 minutes vs 20.7 ± 3.71 minutes; bilateral: 20.4 ± 5.17 minutes vs 25.2 ± 5.43 minutes), less complications (2.10% vs 2.65%), lower recurrence rate (0% vs 4.44%), and similar hospital stay (2.3 ± 1.1 vs 2.1 ± 1.3) as compared with CG. No iliac vessel injury, spermatic cord vessels injury, vas deferens injury, or iatrogenic cryptorchidism occurred in either of the groups. CONCLUSION: TLHK is a safe and feasible treatment for inguinal hernia in children due to less invasion and less recurrence rate than SIL.