Abstract

The rarity of femoral hernias compared to inguinal hernias makes it difficult to present studies comparing laparoscopic surgery with open surgery in these diseases. In this study, we compared the results of open and laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of femoral hernia. A total of 81 patients with femoral hernia who underwent laparoscopic and open repair between January 2020 and December 2024 were analyzed in a retrospective cohort study at a single center. 34 patients were in the Laparoscopy (LA) group and 47 patients in the Open Approach (OA) group. The baseline data characteristics appeared comparable between the two groups in our study (Table 1). Recurrence rate and mean hospital stay were higher in the OA group (p=0.03 and p=0.018, respectively). In the LA group, 28 (82.4%) of the operations were performed by a specialized hernia surgeon, whereas in the OA group, 20 (42.5%) of the operations were performed by a specialized hernia surgeon, a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the groups regarding follow-up periods, chronic pain, operation time, mortality, and complications. Laparoscopic repairs of femoral hernias demonstrated a reduced recurrence rate and a shorter duration of hospital stay without elevating the risk of complications, all while maintaining comparable operative times to open repairs. Moreover, prospective randomized studies are necessary to further evaluate such comparisons in the context of femoral hernias.

Key words: Femoral hernia, laparoscopy, open repair, laparoscopic repair