Port site hernia: Minor but severe complication of laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Abstract

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is a gold standard procedure for the management of patients with cholelithiasis with fewer complications but still port site hernia is one of the severe complications if not treated properly may lead adverse result. This usually results from improper closure or infection of the musculoaponeurotic layers of the abdominal wall. The frequency of port site hernia is variable in literature and its association with infection and other co-morbidities is less explored. Objectives: To determine the frequency of port-site hernia after laparoscopic cholecystectomy at a tertiary care hospital Larkana and its association with infection and co-morbidities. Study Design: Descriptive Case Series study. Setting: Department of Surgery, Chandka Medical College Teaching Hospital, Larkana. Period: December 2018 to December 2019. Material & Methods: One hundred forty-eight patients undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomies, who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and gave informed consent were selected for this study. All the patients were followed for 6 months. Data was recorded for age, gender, BMI, smoking and diabetes mellitus status. Infection and port site hernia were observed during the follow-up period. The SPSS version 21 was used for data analysis. Results: The majority of the patients 79 (53.4%) were above the age of 35 years. The mean age of the patients was 40.14 ±11.40 years. Females were younger than males. Among them 19 (12.8%) were males compared to 129 (87.2%) females. Mean BMI (kg/m²) of male patients were 25.98±3.53 and female patients were 24.80±3.04. The mean duration of surgery was 63.72 (+18.20) minutes, mostly accomplished is within 80mins (54.1%).  Out of 148 patients in 5 (3.4%) patients port site hernia was observed. In all these patients wound to get infected and surgery was for a prolonged period. A significant association has been found between port site hernia, operative time and port site infection. However, no significant association has been found between port site hernia and gender, age, smoking and Diabetes (P>0.05). Conclusion: The frequency of port site hernia is low but could be disastrous if the bowel gets obstructed. Using good technique and reducing operative time are effective measures in reducing the port site infection and the port site hernia.