Background: Although off-midline incisions (unilateral low transverse or Pfannenstiel incision) have been reported to have a lower incidence of incisional hernia (IH) than periumbilical vertical incision for the purpose of specimen extraction, it is most commonly used in laparoscopic colon cancer surgery because off-midline incisions are associated with the limitation of colon exteriorization. This study aims to investigate the risk of IH after laparoscopic colectomy and compare midline vertical incision versus transverse incision focusing on the incidence of IH.
Methods: Patients who underwent elective laparoscopic colectomy due to colon malignancy from June 2015 to May 2017 were included. All patients had either vertical (n = 429) or muscle splitting periumbilical transverse incisions (n = 125).
Results: Median duration of the follow-up period was 23.6 months, during which IHs occurred in 12.1% patients. The incidence of hernia was significantly lower in the transverse group (3 vs. 64, 2.4% vs. 14.9%, p < 0.001). On multivariate analysis, BMI ≥ 23 [odds ratio (OR) 2.282, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.245-4.182, p = 0.008], postoperative surgical site infection (OR 3.780, 95% CI 1.969-7.254, p < 0.001) and vertical incision (OR 7.113, 95% CI 2.173-23.287, p < 0.001) were independently related with increased incidence of IH.
Conclusions: A muscle splitting periumbilical transverse incision could significantly reduce the rate of IH in minimally invasive colon cancer surgery.
© 2022. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Société Internationale de Chirurgie.