Purpose: The aim of this study was to clarify internal hernia (IH) characteristics after laparoscopic gastrectomy.
Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study of 1943 consecutive gastric cancer patients who underwent surgery at our institute between 2004 and 2015. Since 2013, our technique includes antecolic Roux-en-Y (RY) with closure of all mesenteric defects during laparoscopic total gastrectomy (LTG) as standard.
Results: Postoperative IH was only detected in patients who underwent total gastrectomy with RY reconstruction. Furthermore, the incidence of IH was significantly higher after LTG than after open total gastrectomy (4.9% vs. 1.0%; P=0.005). IH after LTG occurred in 8.0% of patients before standardization with closure of the mesenteric defects, but no IH was observed after standardization (P=0.047).
Conclusions: Closure of all mesenteric defects is recommended for gastric cancer patients who undergo LTG with antecolic RY. Registration number: UMIN000009163/000025029 (www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/).