: Online published version of an accepted article before publication in the final form. Journal Name: Journal of Case Reports and Images in Surgery doi: To be assigned Early view version published: November 29, 2017 How to cite the article: Nelson B, Kristo G. Omental patch to prevent mesh contact with bowel during port-site hernia repair. Journal of Case Reports and Images in Surgery. Forthcoming 2017. Disclaimer: This manuscript has been accepted for publication. This is a pdf file of the. The is an online published version of an accepted article before publication in the final form. The proof of this manuscript will be sent to the authors for corrections after which this manuscript will undergo content check, copyediting/proofreading and content formatting to conform to journal s requirements. Please note that during the above publication processes errors in content or presentation may be discovered which will be rectified during manuscript processing. These errors may affect the contents of this manuscript and final published version of this manuscript may be extensively different in content and layout than this Early View Article. Page 1 of 9
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 TYPE OF ARTICLE: Case Report TITLE: Omental patch to prevent mesh contact with bowel during port-site hernia repair AUTHORS: Benjamin Nelson 1, 2 1, 3*, Gentian Kristo AFFILIATIONS: 1 Department of Surgery, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA, 2 Department of Surgery, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA, and 3 Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA CORRESPONDING AUTHOR DETAILS Gentian Kristo Department of Surgery, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System (116C), 1400 VFW Parkway, West Roxbury, Boston, MA 02132, USA Email: gentian.kristo@va.gov Short Running Title: NOT GIVEN Guarantor of Submission: The corresponding author is the guarantor of submission. 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 Page 2 of 9
33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 ABSTRACT When repairing the ventral hernias with mesh it is important to avoid the direct contact of the mesh with the bowels as it can lead to complications such as adhesions, intestinal obstructions, and entero-cutaneous fistulae. We present a case where a laparoscopic port-site hernia was repaired using intra-peritoneal synthetic mesh covered with an omental patch to prevent direct mesh-to-bowel contact. In select situations, this technique could be used as an efficient, costeffective, and durable alternative to the use of more expensive and less available composite meshes. Keywords: NOT GIVEN 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 Page 3 of 9
65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 INTRODUCTION The use of mesh in the repair of ventral hernias has been associated with significantly decreased rates of recurrence [1] and is the current standard of care. This benefit does not come without risks however and direct contact of the mesh with the intestinal loops is associated with complications such as adhesions, bowel obstructions, and entero-cutaneous fistulae formation [2]. One technique which has allowed surgeons a safe option for using synthetic mesh in cases with peritoneal violation is the interposition of omentum between an onlay position and the abdominal viscera [3]. Here we present our experience with creating an omental patch to cover a synthetic mesh placed intraperitoneally. CASE REPORT A 66 year-old man was evaluated in our clinic with a symptomatic umbilical port-site hernia, one year after a laparoscopic cholecystectomy for a large gallbladder polyp. An elective, outpatient repair of the hernia was performed. In the operating room, after the incision was carried down through the dermis, the hernia was found to contain exposed omentum without a hernia sac (Figure 1). The size of the hernia defect was 2.5 x 3 cm. We then decided to repair the hernia using the The Prolene Hernia System (Ethicon; Somerville, NJ, USA) (Figure 2), which consists of two layers of polypropylene mesh (underlay and onlay patches) joined by a connector, which plugs the fascial defect and virtually eliminates mesh migration [4]. To avoid the direct contact between the bowels and the underlay component of the Prolene hernia system, we decided to interposition an omental patch. Using interrupted polyglactin sutures, a piece of the herniated omentum was sutured as a patch to the sublay component of the hernia system (Figure 3). The sublay component of the mesh with the attached omental path was then introduced into the peritoneal cavity and the onlay component of the hernia system was sutured to the fascia with interrupted non-absorbable sutures. The wound was then closed in two layers. Page 4 of 9
96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 Post-operative follow-up has shown a well-healed wound, without evidence of seroma, infection, or recurrence. DISCUSSION The incidence of laparoscopic port-site hernia varies from 1% to 22% [5, 6]. They are potentially dangerous and can lead to considerable morbidity requiring surgical interventions. The port-site hernias are classified into 3 types [7] as follows. 1. Early onset type: Dehiscence of anterior and posterior fascial plane and peritoneum characterized by early onset after surgery. It usually occurs as a small bowel obstruction. 2. Late onset type: Dehiscence of anterior and posterior fascial plane. Peritoneum constitutes the hernia sac. Hernias usually develop several months after surgery and they are not associated with small bowel obstruction. They appear as an asymptomatic swelling by the wound site. 3. Special type: Dehiscence of the whole abdominal wall. Intestine and/or omentum protrusion. There is no sac, being not a typical herniation. Here we report a case of a special type port-site hernia, with protrusion of omentum, without a hernia sac. During our repair, synthetic mesh was placed intraperitoneally, but the visceral aspect of the mesh was covered with an omental patch to prevent a direct mesh-to-bowel contact. An alternative to our hernia repair technique in the presented scenario could have been the use of a composite mesh. Composite, two-sided mesh is often used intraperitoneally as they can minimize the mesh-to-viscera adhesions. They have a polypropylene layer on the parietal side to enhance rapid abdominal wall integration, and a coated, absorbable collagen barrier on the visceral side to minimize visceral attachments to the mesh. However, the parietal synthetic layer of the composite mesh can contract by 30 to 50% leading to rolling of composite meshes, exposing the polypropylene component to the bowel surface [8]. Furthermore, the composite mesh systems are expensive and are not necessarily available at every institution. Page 5 of 9
127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 This case report is significant because it presents a safe, durable, and cost effective option for the surgeon who finds him or herself in the peritoneal cavity with a synthetic mesh that would otherwise be in contact with bowel. CONCLUSION In conclusion, every effort should be made to prevent direct mesh-to-bowel contact during repair of ventral hernias as it can lead to complications. One option that can facilitate these efforts is the use of an omental patch to cover the mesh placed in the intra-peritoneal position. CONFLICT OF INTEREST NOT GIVEN AUTHOR S CONTRIBUTIONS NOT GIVEN REFERENCES 1. Aslani N, Brown CJ (2010) Does mesh offer an advantage over tissue in the open repair of umbilical hernias? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Hernia 14(5):455 462 2. Chew DK, Choi LH, Rogers AM. Enterocutaneous fistula 14 years after prosthetic mesh repair of a ventral incisional hernia: a life-long risk? Surgery. 2000;127:352 3. 3. Sorour, Magdy. A (2014). Interposition of the omentum and/or peritoneum in the -emergency repair of large ventral hernias with polypropylene mesh. International Journal of Surgery, 12 (2014). 4. PROLENE Polypropylene Hernia System. http://www.ethicon.com/healthcare-professionals/products/hernia-repair-andfixation/hernia-mesh-devices/prolene-polypropylene-hernia-system [accessed October 11, 2017] Page 6 of 9
157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 5. Hussain A., Mahmood H., Singhal T., Balakrishnan S., Nicholls J., El-Hasani S. Long-term study of port-site incisional hernia after laparoscopic procedures. JSLS. 2009;13:346 349. 6. Di L.N., Coscarella G., Lirosi F., Gaspari A. Port-site closure: a new problem, an old device. JSLS. 2002;6:181 183. 7. H. Tonouchi, Y. Ohmori, M. Kobayashi, and M. Kusunoki, Trocar site hernia, Archives of Surgery, vol. 139, no. 11, pp. 1248 1256, 2004. 8. FitzGerald JF, Kumar AS. Biologic versus Synthetic Mesh Reinforcement: What are the Pros and Cons? Clin Colon Rectal Surg. 2014 Dec; 27(4): 140 148. FIGURE LEGENDS Figure 1: Herniated omentum without a peritoneal sac Figure 2: The Prolene Hernia System Figure 3: Omental Patch secured to the underlay component of the Prolene Hernia System using interrupted polyglactin sutures. 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 Page 7 of 9
189 FIGURES 190 191 192 193 Figure 1: Herniated omentum without a peritoneal sac 194 195 196 197 Figure 2: The Prolene Hernia System 198 Page 8 of 9
199 200 201 202 Figure 3: Omental Patch secured to the underlay component of the Prolene Hernia System using interrupted polyglactin sutures. Page 9 of 9