Outcomes of the Abdominal Wall Reconstruction in a District General Hospital

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to explore the outcomes of abdominal wall reconstruction surgery by assessing postoperative complications and recurrence. Methods This is a retrospective case series. All patients who underwent abdominal wall reconstruction between 2018 and 2023 were included and followed up for complications and recurrence till January 2024. Patient demographics, operative parameters and postoperative complications were extracted in an Excel sheet, and data analysis was performed with SPSS 27 software. Results Forty-two patients were included in this study with a median age of 61.5 (34–83) and 1.2: 1 female: male gender distribution. Moreover, 41% of the included patients had a BMI 35, and 47.6% were smokers. The type of hernia was incisional in 50% and recurrent hernia in 31%, and the defect size was 10 centimetres in 48% of the included cohort. The type of operation was as follows: Rives-Stoppa (50%), TAR (24%), and combined procedure (26%). additionally, only 18% had their operation laparoscopically, and the position of mesh was retro-rectus in 88% of the cases. Post-operative complications were SSI (11.9%), seroma (28.6%), haematoma (7.1%), re-operation (9.5%), entero-cutaneous fistula (2.4%), and Hernia recurrence (4.7%) at a median follow-up of 42.5 months. Length of hospital stay was 5 days in 48% of patients. Conclusion The Component separation technique is an excellent approach to repairing complex incisional hernia with excellent results (5% recurrence rate). Abdominal reconstruction is feasible in district general hospital settings.