Laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal prosthesis:a report of 78 cases

Objective:To study the safety,the feasibility,the efficacy and the operation skills of totally laparoscopic extraperitoneal prosthesis (TEP).Methods:Between Nov. 2005 and Mar. 2008,78 patients with inguinal hernia were performed 85 times of TEP,including 16 direct inguinal hernia and 69 indirect inguinal hernia.Among 78 patients,71 patients had unilateral hernia and 7 patients had bilateral hernias,including 7 recurrent hernias.The clinical data were retrospectively analyzed.Results:Among 78 cases of TEP,1 case was converted to transabdominal preperitoneal prothesis(TAPP).The operations lasted for 45 to 105 minutes.The patients stayed in hospital for 3 to 8 days.The average was 4.5 days.The patients didn't need analgesics.The most common complication was scrotum seroma,which appeared in 6 cases(7%).All the patients were followed up for 3 to 31 months.There was no recurrent cases.Conclusions:The procedure of TEP is safe and reliable,with faster postoperative recovery,less pain and lower recurrence rate.