Abstract

Introduction: Ventral hernia is one of the most common general surgical pathologies. An incisional hernia will develop in 10–15% of patients with an abdominal incision, and the risk increases to up to 23% in those who develop surgical site infections. Ventral hernia repairs are mostly elective (90%) procedures, but the repair methods are highly variable. Popularized in Europe by Rives and Stoppa, the retromuscular technique has proven very effective, with 94.2% probability of achieving the lowest recurrence rate and 77.3% probability of achieving the lowest SSI rate.

The study aimed to evaluate our experience at a secondary care center performing Rives-Stoppa repair for abdominal ventral and incisional hernias.

Materials and Methods: Between April 2019 and August 2021, 46 patients at a secondary regional hospital in Teni Konomi, Korce, Albania underwent Rives-Stoppa incisional hernia repair.

Results: There were 14 (31%) males and 32(69%) females (age range 31-75). Most incisional hernias were midline xiphoid-pubic incision and supraumbilical, with several subcostal (2 right and 1 left) hernias. At the time of repair, most incisional hernias were symptomatic and evident on physical exam. In 4 cases, the hernia sac was incarcerated at presentation.

Conclusion: The Rives-Stoppa technique has excellent long-term results and low morbidity in patients with large primary or recurrent incisional hernias. It is the gold standard for most surgeons.

Keywords: Incisional Hernia, Mesh polypropylene, abdominal wall surgery, Rives-Stoppa Procedure