Postoperative inguinal hernia after robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer: evaluation of risk factors and recommendation of a convenient prophylactic procedure

Introduction The aim of this article is to evaluate the risk factors and recommend a prophylactic procedure for preventing inguinal hernia (IH) after robotic assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) without extra products and operative time. Material and methods A total of 279 patients (558 groins) who underwent RARP at our institution from October 2010 to December 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. Age, body mass index, prostate-specific antigen, clinical T stage, prostate volume, console time and the dilatation of internal inguinal ring were evaluated as the risk factors of IH. We also investigated whether the different incision procedures of the peritoneum around the medial side of the internal inguinal ring, ‘proximal incision’ or ‘distal incision’, were related to the occurrence of IH. Results Postoperative IH occurred in 39 (7.5%) of 558 groins. The dilatation of the internal inguinal ring was observed in 89 of 558 (15.9%) groins. The proximal and distal incision group included 296 groins (52.8%) and 262 groins (47.2%), respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed the right side (P = 0.041), the dilatation of internal inguinal ring (P <0.01) and the distal incision (P <0.01) were significant risk factors for postoperative IH. Furthermore, the proximal incision significantly reduced the risk of postoperative IH regardless of the dilatation of internal inguinal ring. Conclusions The dilatation of the internal inguinal ring represents an important risk factor for IH after RARP. However, incising the peritoneum sufficiently close to the medial edge of the internal inguinal ring can prevent postoperative IH without extra products and time.