Laparoscopy-assisted Needlescopic Repair of Paediatric Umbilical Hernia: Our Preliminary Experience

Purpose: The laparoscopic approach for paediatric umbilical hernia repair offers an advantage over the open technique, but the literature has a paucity of studies highlighting the use of minimally invasive methods. We describe a novel minimal invasive technique incorporating a needlescopic approach for repairing paediatric umbilical hernia using a peripheral intravenous catheter needle. Materials and Methods: This prospective observational descriptive study was conducted in the Department of Minimal Access and General Surgery at our institute over 18 months from August 2024 to January 2026. Thirty children aged between 2 and 16 years having an umbilical hernia defect <40 mm size underwent laparoscopic-assisted needlescopic repair. Results: The mean operative time (minutes) was significantly lower in the non-adhesion group (25.5 ± 10.4) than in the adhesion group (46.4 ± 18.3) ( P = 0.0011). The mean duration of hospital stay (days) was significantly shorter in patients without adhesions (1.1 ± 0.3) than with adhesions (2.0 ± 0.0) ( P = 0.0001). Post-operative (PO) analgesic requirement (doses) was significantly higher among patients with adhesions (4.5 ± 0.5) than without adhesions (3.0 ± 0.5) ( P = 0.0001). The mean time to resume activity did not differ significantly between the two groups ( P = 0.9201). Among PO complications, there was a trend toward significance seen for fewer complications in the defect without adhesions group ( P = 0.0522). Conclusion: This small sample strongly emphasises that this simple method is safe, quick, effective, cosmetically acceptable with significant benefits. The peritoneal access through Palmer’s point in children appears to be safe and achievable with ease.