Persistent postherniorrhaphy pain following inguinal hernia repair: A cross-sectional study of prevalence, pain characteristics, and effects on quality of life

Abstract

Introduction: Chronic inguinal pain due to the inguinal hernia repair is still a serious consideration, and its incidence is evident in approximately 3%-6% of the patients. The purpose of this study was performed to assess the prevalence of chronic pain after inguinal hernia repair and the effects on the quality of life in our patient.

Methods: The records of the patients who were 18 years of age or older and had had an inguinal hernia repair under spinal anesthesia after receiving a diagnosis of inguinal hernia at this hospital from 2009 to 2015 were accessed through the hospital's data system. Patients who had signed the informed consent agreement were given an Inguinal Pain Questionnaire (IPQ) and a Douleur Neuropathique 4 (DN-4) questionnaire after recording their demographic data on the appointment day. Surgical incision line was evaluated with a dolorimeter and mild touch hypoesthesia, needle-touch hypoesthesia, brushing allodynia were evaluated with cotton, and 0.711 mm diameter Von-Frey filament (Touch-Test Sensory Evaluator Kit; North Coast Medical, Inc., Gilroy, CA, USA).

Results: The total number of patients who had ASA I-II scores and who had undergone a one-sided inguinal hernia repair under spinal anesthesia in elective conditions with at least three or more months of recovery time months was 619. Of these 264 patients, 203 with absence of pain (score of the severest pain over the past week and now was 0) were classified as the Non-Pain group and 61 patients with inguinal pain (score of the severest pain over the past week or now was 1 or more) were classified as the Pain group. The incidence of chronic pain after inguinal hernia surgery was 23.48% (n = 61) in our study. The pain was localized at and near the surgical incision and radiated into the scrotum in 17.73% (n = 36) of the male patients having chronic pain. While chronic pain developed in 60 out of 239 patients who had pain prior to the surgery. The presence of pain prior to the surgery was evaluated as an effective factor for the chronic groin pain. Neuropathic pain was detected with the DN-4 questionnaire in 6 (2.95%) out of 203 patients who stated that they had no pain during the physical examination and the week prior to the exam. The frequency of chronic pain after inguinal hernia repair was found 23.48% in our study. This is the same rate as previously reported. Quality of life of these patients was affected. We believe that there is an urgent need for prospective randomized studies with the aim of determining a standardized methodology towards preventive measures after determining the risk factors of chronic pain developed in the post inguinal hernia repair period.

Keywords: Chronic pain; DN-4; Neuropathic pain; Postherniorrhaphy pain; Quality of life.