A clinical study of the incidence and disability caused by mesh neuralgia after inguinal mesh hernioplasty and the effects of prophylactic ilioinguinal neurectomy and its role in preventing chronic groin pain after inguinal hernioplasty

Abstract

Background: Residual neuralgia, called as Inguinodynia, is an important complication unique to groin hernia repair. The reported incidence ranges between 9-63%. The symptoms are potentially disabling. Symptoms are often more pronounced on axial twisting of body. Methods for prevention include identification and preservation of all nerves, Ilioinguinal Neurectomy and triple Neurectomy during surgery.Methods: One hundred patients underwent elective unilateral Lichtenstein’s tension free hernioplasty. 50 patients were subjected to elective ilioinguinal neurectomy. The remaining underwent standard Liechtenstein’s mesh hernioplasty, without ilioinguinal neurectomy. Randomization was achieved by allocating alternate patients to each group - prophylactic neurectomy, or nerve preservation. All patients, during each review were asked to fill out a Pain Disability Questionnaire to assess sensory loss and pain disability objectively.Results: At completion of 6 monthly follow up pain at rest (none in group ‘A’ compared with 3 in group ‘B’), after coughing 5 times (none in group ‘A’ compared with 7 in group ‘B’), after climbing 4 flights of stairs(3 in group ‘A’ compared with 16 in group ‘B’) and after cycling for 20 minutes (11 in group ‘A’ compared with 22 in group ‘B’) were all significantly lesser in the neurectomy group as compared with the non neurectomy group. More importantly, exertional chronic pain incidence at 6 months was significantly less in group ‘A’.Conclusions: It was concluded that pain after inguinal mesh hernioplasty is a cause of morbidity, pain was complained of by a significantly larger number of non-neurectomised patients at 6 months of follow-up, prophylactic ilioinguinal neurectomy is associated with reduced exertional chronic groin pain, disability caused by pain after inguinal hernioplasty, is significantly reduced by ilioinguinal neurectomy and an extremely significant reduction in the requirement of medication is brought about by neurectomy compared with controls.