A Case of Diaphragmatic Hernia Developing After Right Hepatectomy That was Treated by Laparoscopic Surgery

Abstract

Diaphragmatic hernia developing after hepatectomy is rare. A 51-year-old female patient who had undergone right hepatectomy via a thoraco-laparotomy presented 9 months later complaining of upper abdominal pain and nausea. An abdominal CT revealed a diaphragmatic hernia and bowel obstruction, and we performed laparoscopic surgery. The cause of the herniation was determined as failure of the sutures of the diaphragm. The hernia orifice was repaired with a mesh coated with an adhesion inhibitor. Thus, laparoscopic surgery is a valid treatment option for diaphragmatic hernia developing after liver resection. As incarcerated diaphragmatic hernias could prove fatal, the possibility of diaphragmatic hernias developing as a late complication after liver resection should be borne in mind.