MANAGEMENT OF INFECTED MESH AFTER INGUINAL HERNIA REPAIR aditya.baksi@gmail.com

 

MANAGEMENT OF INFECTED MESH AFTER INGUINAL HERNIA REPAIR

3

India

Oral or Poster

Mesh infection is a dreaded complication of inguinal hernia repair, leading to prolonged morbidity, chronic pain, and increased cost of treatment. Mesh explantation is often required when conservative management fails.

A retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database was conducted. Patients who underwent mesh explantation between January 2022 and December 2024 were included.

Six patients underwent mesh explantation for infected inguinal hernia mesh during the study period. All had undergone inguinal hernia repair at other centers. Initial hernia repair was done by open approach in 3 patients (50%) and laparoscopic approach in 3 patients (50%). The median time to mesh infection was 4.5 months (range 2-180 months). Mesh explantation was performed via open approach in 3 patients (50%) and laparoscopic approach in 3 patients (50%). Microbial cultures were positive in 3 patients (50%), with MRSA identified in 1 case, MSSA in 1 case, and E. coli in 1 case. Three patients (50%) had sterile cultures. Mean wound healing time was 1.9 months (range 10 days to 3 months). No patients experienced hernia recurrence during follow-up periods ranging from 5 months to 3 years.

Infected mesh following hernia repair requires a tailored approach. The approach of mesh explantation, laparoscopic or open, depends on the initial hernia repair. Both laparoscopic and open explantation have good outcomes, if complete mesh removal can be achieved.