Case of Two-stage Elective Repair of Incarcerated Obturator Hernia with Bilateral Femoral Hernia

Abstract

Here, we report the case of an 85-year-old woman who was brought to our emergency department with right femoral pain. The patient was diagnosed with an incarcerated right obturator hernia and underwent emergency surgery. Laparoscopic observation revealed a right obturator hernia with an incarcerated small bowel within the hernia sac and left obturator hernia, and bilateral femoral hernia. We laparoscopically resolved the incarcerated small bowel and found no necrosis in the incarcerated bowel. After improvement of the general condition, we chose elective surgery to repair the bilateral obturator and femoral hernia as the patient had recently suffered from pneumonia and had uncontrolled diabetes. After 12 days, bilateral obturator and femoral hernia repairs were performed using the Kugel patch. The patient's postoperative course was good. Obturator hernias tend to coexist with other hernias, are common in older patients, and present complications. We suggest that a two-stage elective surgery after observation of the abdomen and subsequent laparoscopic resolution of incarceration is a valid treatment option in cases of incarcerated obturator hernia.