Abstract
We report an extremely rare case of traumatic abdominal wall hernia, occurred in an anatomically un-weak point, successfully repaired with Marlex mesh®.
A 29-year-old man received multiple fracture at a traffic accident in March 2001 had been hospitalized for two months. Five months later, he was seen at the hospital, because he noticed a bulge in the right flank at coughing. An abdominal wall defect with a diffuse bulge in the right flank was recognized in erect position, but this bulge reduced spontaneously when he was in supine position. Abdominal X-ray film revealed a protruding intestinal gaseous shadow at the site of the bulge. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) revealed a defect of muscular tissue in the right abdominal wall, 4×5cm in size, and subcutaneous bowel. Based on these findings, a diagnosis of traumatic abdominal wall hernia was made. Eight months later, abdominal CT scan demonstrated an increase of the hernia to about 8×7cm in size, therefore, an operation was performed. The defect of the abdominal wall presenting as a hernia orifice was large, and the surrounding tissue was not strong enough to bear direct sutures, so that a repair was carried out by using synthetic material (Marlex mesh®). The patient had an uneventful postoperative recovery and remains well without any complications 10 months after the operation.
