Abstract
A 59-year-old woman, who drove a car after she had taken a hypnotic, lost consciousness and ran into a telephone pole. She was brought into the hospital by ambulance, when she complained of right flank pain, but was decided to be followed. About one month later, she noticed a bulge on the right flank and presented to our department because it gradually enlarged. A painless elastic-hard tumor 15 cm in longer diameter was palpated in the right flank. Based on the finding together with those of imaging procedures, superior lumber hernia containing a transverse colon as the hernia content was diagnosed. It was inferred that the abrupt increase in the abdominal pressure which was caused by a seat belt at the traffic accident might lead to the onset of the hernia. Using Parietex Optimized Composite MeshTM (PCO), laparoscopic repair for the inferior lumber hernia through a transabdominal route was performed. The patient was discharged from the hospital without having complications on the 3rd postoperative day. A follow-up examination done 9 months after the operation revealed no adverse events including recurrence and chronic pain.
Lumber hernia is a rare entity and so far few cases repaired by laparoscopic surgery have been reported. Compared with the conventional procedures, the palaroscpic repair is less invasive, offers cosmetic benefits, and can shorten postoperative hospital stay.
