Laparoscopic Interventions for Hiatal Hernia: Analysis of 51 Consecutive Cases

Abstract

Introduction: Studies on the detection of benign causes of dysphagia and swallowing disorders have been blended with the current technology, and thus, serious advances have been made in determination of etiology of eating disorders. The most common of these are hiatal hernias, and there have been significant improvements in both understanding the patho- physiology of the disease and its treatment. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the results of 51 cases who underwent laparoscopic repair due to hiatal hernia in light of the literature. Methods: Between September 2015 and October 2019, laparoscopic Nissen and Toupet fundoplication operations performed by a single general surgeon for gastroesophageal reflux and hiatal hernia in SBU Ümraniye Training and Research Hospital, Department of General Surgery, were included retrospectively in this study. Demographic characteristics, complaints, comor- bidities, type of hiatal hernia, previous operation, and early and late post-operative complication parameters of each case were evaluated. The results were evaluated in percentage analyses with SPSS v21 for Windows and presented with tables and graphs. Results: Fifty-one patients who underwent Nissen and Toupet fundoplication operations were included in the study. The mean age of all patients was 50.61±1.62 years. The mean ages of 23 male and 28 female patients were 48.30±2.69 years and 52.5±1.93 years, respectively. All but one patient underwent Nissen fundoplication. The time from diagnosis to surgery was 440.50±128.30 days. Post-operative hospital stay was 2.24±0.28 days. Four patients developed intraoperative (pleural defect in two patients, one liver injury, and one subcutaneous emphysema), and one patient developed early post-operative complications (postop- erative atelectasis). In the 6th month control endoscopy, one patient had recurrence and the other patients had no pathology. Discussion and Conclusion: Hiatal hernia is a common benign pathology that decreases quality of life. We believe that laparoscopic surgical repair is an effective method that can be safely applied after enough experience.