BACKGROUND: Several surgical techniques have been developed over the past years, and total extraperitoneal and transabdominal preperitoneal inguinal hernia repair are the endoscopic techniques that are most commonly used. AIM: To describe and discuss Dulucq's technique and the modifications of using 3-D mesh in total extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair. METHODS: Patients who underwent an elective inguinal hernia repair were enrolled prospectively in this study. Operative and postoperative course were studied. RESULTS: A total of 261 hernia repairs were included in the study. The hernias were repaired by total extraperitoneal technique; two hernias (0.75%) were converted to open anterior Liechtenstein technique. Mean operative time was 43.38 min in unilateral hernia and 53.36 min in bilateral hernia. Most of the patients (95%) were discharged at the same day of the surgery. The overall postoperative morbidity rate was 5.7%. The incidence of recurrence rate was 0.0% in median follow-up period of 26 months. CONCLUSION: Total extraperitoneal hernioplasty is a very effective and safe procedure in the hands of experienced surgeons with specific training. It is an interesting option in bilateral and recurrent hernia as it obtains satisfactory results in terms of postoperative pain and morbidity.
Laparoscopic surgery; Inguinal hernia; Surgical mesh
