Hernias & Ruptures Flashcards
What is a hernia?
- A protrusion of an organ or part of an organ through a defect in the wall of the anatomical area in which it normally lies.
- Generally consists of a hernialring and sac
What is a rupture compared to a hernia?
What can be seen here?
Here is the rupture visualised
What are the locations of hernias?
- Umbilical
- Inguinal
- Incisional
- Diaphragmatic
- Perineal
- Pericardio-peritoneal
- Hiatal
What are the aims of hernia surgery?
- Return hernia content to normal location
- Secure closure of neck of sac
- Obliterate redundant tissue in the sac
- Try to use the patients own tissues for repair
How should hernias reduced?
- Some are non-reducible
- Directly incise over site
- Ensure adequate exposure
- Try to use atraumatic technique
- Breakdown adhesions
- Check viability of herniated tissues especially if strangulated hernia
- Resect non viable tissue before returning to abdominal cavity
Discuss defect closure?
- Direct opposition if possible
- Know anatomy to ensure holding strength
- Don’t compromise vasculature
- Use sufficiently strong suture material; e.g., polydioxanone, polypropylene, etc.
- Monofilament to avoid sinus formation Defect closure
What structures run through the inguinal canal?
The structures which pass through the canals differ between males and females:
in males: the spermatic cord and its coverings + the ilioinguinal nerve.
in females: the round ligament of the uterus + the ilioinguinal nerve.
The classic description of the contents of the spermatic cords in the male are:
3 arteries: artery to vas deferens (or ductus deferens), testicular artery, cremasteric artery;
3 fascial layers: external spermatic, cremasteric, and internal spermatic fascia;
3 other structures: pampiniform plexus, vas deferens (ductus deferens), testicular lymphatics;
3 nerves: genital branch of the genitofemoral nerve (L1/2), sympathetic and visceral afferent fibres, ilioinguinal nerve (N.B. outside spermatic cord but travels next to it)
Note that the ilioinguinal nerve passes through the superficial ring to descend into the scrotum, but does not formally run through the canal.
Discuss tensionless closure?
- Use muscle flap; e.g., internal obturator for perineal hernia
- Polypropylene mesh if necessary
- Well tolerated, allows capillary and granulation tissue in growth
- Strict asepsis
- Omentum
- Eliminate dead space, drains if necessary
Discuss umbilical hernias?
- Generally young
- Usually congenital due to failed embryogenesis
- Thought to be inherited
- True hernias-lined by peritoneal sac
- Can see in association with cryptorchid dogs
Discuss umbilical hernias further?
- Clinically soft, painless swelling at umbilicus
- May be vomiting/abdominal pain if strangulation of bowel
- Normally contain fat/omentum, occasionally intestine Check diaphragm and heart
How are umbilical hernias treated?
- Radiography not normally necessary
- Diagnose on palpation
- Can resolve spontaneously, or be corrected at neutering (fine to wait till neutering as long as no strangulation and it isn’t huge)
- Repair by reducing, incise over hernia, excise sac and repair muscle edges
- Don’t debride margins
- Close with synthetic, absorbable, monofilament suture; e.g., polydioxanone
What is being done here in this umbilical hernia repair?
Illiptical incision around hernia mass
Reason:
You don’t know what is in the sac so if you boldly cut in could do an instant enterotomy and you don’t want to leave a saggy bit of stretched skin allowing good apposition of skin.
Always resect masses with an ellipse as apposition is better and no puckering occurs.
Discuss an incisional hernia?
- Surgical closure of body cavity fails
- Generally linea alba
- Normally within 7 days
- Can be chronic
- These will be your fault and it will be due to your surgery that it happens.
- This is when a closure fails.
- Day 5 is weakest point for wound healing.
What can be seen here?
Incisional hernia
What are the causes of incisional hernias?
- Generally surgeon to blame
- Incorrect technique
- Incorrect suture material/pattern
- Entrapped fat between wound edges
- Infection
- Steroid therapy/cushingoid patient
- Poor post op care
- Can tell owner that dog moved around too much and didn’t follow aftercare but know it is your fault and do your stitching better.
What are signs of incisional hernias?
- Oedema, inflammation and serosanguinous fluid often pre-empt
- Soft painless swelling
- Palpable defect
- Exposed viscera
Discuss incsional hernia investigations?
- Commonly obvious but in some cases ultrasound might be useful
- Similar with x-rays and advanced imaging
Discuss inguinal hernias?
- Due to congenital inguinal ring abnormality or trauma
- Intestine, bladder or uterus can enter subcutaneous space
- Can be associated with obesity/pregnancy
- Thought to probably be inherited => recommend neutering
What’s going on her with this inguinal hernia repair?
Sac being exteriorised and muscle being closed
*Scrotal hernia you should castrate at same time and make sure inguinal canal is closed properly
What holes naturally occur in the diaphragm?
Holes in diaphragm naturally:
- caval foramen
- oesophageal hiatus
- aortic hiatus
What has happened here in this diaphragmatic hernia?
Omentum and bits of liver can go right through into the chest these cases are pretty dyspnoeic when they present.
Gently draw contents back into abdomen then can see hole you need to close.
How can diaphragmatic ruptures be investigated?
Radiography
- Loss of diaphragmatic line
- Loss of cardiac silhouette
- Presence of gas filled structure in thorax
- Atelectasis
- Displaced abdominal organs
Water soluble contrast into abdomen
Ultrasonography, esp. in chronic case
Discuss perineal hernias?
- Not uncommon
- Can be spectacular
- Bulging perineal area
- Faecal tenesmus/dysuria
- Normally entire older male
- Occasionally in bitch/cat
- d/dx: adenomacarcinoma
- Used to be more prevelant when dogs were tailed docked.
Discuss disruption of pelvic diaphragm?
- Levator ani, coccygeus and external anal sphincter muscles provide lateral support to the anus
- Disruption to this causes rectal enlargement, faecal impaction and tenesmus
- Can be bilateral
- Pelvic fat, peritoneal fat, prostate and bladder can herniate
What are the consequences of bladder retroflecion in a perineal hernia?
Bladder retroflexion
- emergency
- stranguria
- hyperkalaemia (Need to lower this before operate)
- azotaemia
- avascular necrosis
Discuss Herniorrhaphy, colopexy& castration?
- Always neuter and castrate at same time of hernia surgery.
- Key points: the 3 muscle groups involed. External anal sphincter, levator ani and coccygeal are involved and need to be stitched back together to keep contents in.
- When muscles are so atrophied have nothing to suture together can use external obturater muscles as a support
How are hiatal hernias diagnosed?
- Radiography
- soft tissue opacity in dorso- caudal thorax adjacent to diaphragm
- Fluoroscopy
- Endoscopy
What is hiatal hernia treatment?
Tx oesophagitis
- Antacid
- Sucralfate
- Prokinetic
- Antibiotic (if aspiration)
Surgery
- ventral midline coeliotomy
- reduce hernia at oesophageal hiatus and close
- pexyoesophagus to diaphragm
- pexystomach to body wall
How is PPHD investigated?
Radiography
- enlarged cardiac silhouette
- dorsally displaced trachea
- gas opacities in pericardial sac
Ultrasound
- Contrast radiography
Don’t present acute and seen in young patients as congenital.
Discuss PPHD surgery?
- There is a hole in the pericardium the intestine has gotten into. To fix pull the intestines back through diaphragm and close the hole in the diaphragm you don’t need to worry about closing the hole in the pericardium
- Ventral midline coeliotomy
- Incise sternum if necessary
- Reduce viscera
- Suture diaphragm
- no need to separately close pericardium
