Background: Obesity is a risk factor for the development of ventral hernia and increases the risk of recurrence and surgical site infection after hernia repair (HR).
Objectives: We tested the hypothesis that bariatric surgery (BS) before HR would decrease these risks in patients with morbid obesity.
Setting: University hospital, France.
Methods: We retrospectively compared 2 groups of patients with morbid obesity in a case-matched study; 1 underwent immediate HR surgery (control), and the other initially underwent BS and then HR after weight loss (case). Patients were individually matched at a 2:1 ratio according to defect size (<7 or ≥7 cm), obesity grade (<40 or ≥40 kg/m²), American Society of Anesthesiologists score, sex, smoker status, and presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Results: From 2000 to 2017, 41 patients underwent BS, in association with herniorrhaphy in 14 cases (34%). Initial body mass index was higher in the BS group (46.7 ± 6.4 versus 42.4 ± 7.2, P < .0001) but had decreased by the time of HR (34.1 ± 6.5 versus 42.3 ± 7.2, P < .0001). Prosthetic HR was performed after 21.5 months (range, 7-87); however, 7 patients did not receive HR at this time due to insufficient weight loss. Postoperative morbidity was similar in the 2 groups. Hospital stay was shorter in the BS group (6.2 ± 2.6 versus 10.7 ± 9.3 d, P = .002). After a median follow-up of 4.6 ± 4.1 years, the recurrence rate was lower in the BS group (2/30, 6.7%) than in the control group (12/50, 24%; P = .048).
Conclusion: For morbidly obese patients with ventral hernia, BS before HR surgery can decrease recurrence without increasing morbidity.
Keywords: Bariatric surgery; Incisional hernia; Obesity; Ventral hernia.
Copyright © 2018 American Society for Bariatric Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.