BACKGROUND: To explore the diagnostic value of high-resolution ultrasound combined with multi-slice computer tomography (MSCT) for pediatric intra-abdominal hernias (IAHs), and to analyze the potential causes for missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis of IAHs in children.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 45 children with surgically confirmed IAHs. The diagnostic rate of IAHs by preoperative high-resolution ultrasound combined with MSCT was compared with that of intraoperative examination, and the potential causes for missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis by the combination method were analyzed.
RESULTS: Forty-five cases of pediatric IAHs were categorized into primary (25/45, 55.5%) and acquired secondary hernias (20/45, 44.5%). Among children with primary hernias, mesenteric defects were identified as the predominant subtype (40%). Acquired secondary hernias typically resulted from abnormal openings in the abdominal wall or band adhesions due to trauma, surgery, or inflammation. In particular, adhesive band hernias were the major type in children with acquired secondary hernias (40%). The diagnostic rate of high-resolution ultrasound was 77.8%, with \"cross sign\" as a characteristic ultrasonic feature. Among 10 cases of missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis, 5 were finally diagnosed as IAHs by multi-slice computer tomography (MSCT). Overall, the diagnostic rate of pediatric IAHs by preoperative ultrasound combined with radiological imaging reached 88.9%.
CONCLUSIONS: IAHs in children, particularly mesenteric defects, are prone to strangulated intestinal obstruction and necrosis. High-resolution ultrasound combined with MSCT greatly enhances the diagnostic accuracy of pediatric IAHs.

UNASSIGNED: Obesity remains a global health challenge linked to several comorbidities, such as obstructive sleep apnea, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes. The prevalence of bariatric surgeries being performed is steadily increasing because it is a highly effective surgical tool used to achieve significant permanent weight loss. However, with all weight loss surgeries, several complications may not present for months to years after the initial procedure. In particular, the anatomical changes that occur after the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RNYGB) make the risk of internal hernias high. This particular complication is rare but lethal if unrecognized and not treated promptly. This clinical case study aims to provide readers with an overview of diagnosing and recognizing an internal hernia in the setting of previous laparoscopic RNYGB surgical history. Because of the sheer increase in the volume of patients undergoing bariatric surgery worldwide, health care providers must be well educated on the insidious presentations of this late complication and be prepared to act quickly to diagnose and treat these acute abdomen scenarios.

OBJECTIVE: Internal herniation is a well-known complication of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (L-RYGB). The aim of this study was to evaluate smoking as an independent risk factor for internal herniation after L-RYGB.
METHODS: This study was performed as an exploratory post hoc analysis of data from a previous published randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to compare closure and non-closure of mesenteric defects in patients undergoing L-RYGB. The primary outcome of this study was to assess the significance of smoking as a risk factor for internal herniation after L-RYGB. Secondary outcome was early postoperative complications defined as Clavien-Dindo grade ≥ 2.
RESULTS: Four hundred one patients were available for post hoc analysis. The risk of internal herniation was significantly higher among patients who were smoking preoperatively (hazard ratio (HR) 2.4, 95% confidence interval (c.i.) 1.3 to 4.5; p = 0.005). This result persisted after adjusting for other patient characteristics (HR 2.2, 1.2 to 4.2; p = 0.016). 6.0% of the patients had postoperative complications within the first 30 days. 4.9% of these patients were smoking and 6.3% were not smoking, p = 0.657. 11.0% of the patients underwent surgery due to internal herniation by 5 years after the primary procedure.
CONCLUSIONS: Smoking is a significant risk factor for internal herniation but did not increase risk for 30 days postoperative complications.

BACKGROUND: Petersen\'s hernia, which occurs after Billroth-II (B-II) or Roux-en-Y (REY) anastomosis, can be reduced by defect closure. This study aims to compare the incidence of bowel obstruction above Clavien-Dindo classification grade III due to Petersen\'s hernia between the mesenteric fixation method and the conventional methods after laparoscopic or robotic gastrectomy.
METHODS: This study was designed as prospective, single-blind, non-inferiority randomized controlled multicenter trial in Korea. Patients with histologically diagnosed gastric cancer of clinical stages I, II, or III who underwent B-II or REY anastomosis after laparoscopic or robotic gastrectomy are enrolled in this study. Participants who meet the inclusion criteria are randomly assigned to two groups: a CLOSURE group that underwent conventional Petersen\'s defect closure method and a MEFIX group that underwent the mesenteric fixation method. The primary endpoint is the number of patients who underwent surgery for bowel obstruction caused by Petersen\'s hernia within 3 years after laparoscopic or robotic gastrectomy.
CONCLUSIONS: This trial is expected to provide high-level evidence showing that the MEFIX method can quickly and easily close Petersen\'s defect without increased postoperative complications compared to the conventional method.
BACKGROUND: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05105360. Registered on November 3, 2021.

UNASSIGNED: Congential diaphragmatic hernias (CDH) are a rare process that have a prevalence of 1-4 cases per 10,000 live births, and of these, bilateral Bochdalek congenital diaphragmatic hernias are even rarer entities that occur in about 1% of cases. This finding is rarely documented in literature. This paper offers a detailed methodical timeline documentation of the events that occurred after delivery and includes how to approach the diagnosis and management of such a rare and volatile condition.
UNASSIGNED: The neonate was born at 35 weeks and 6 days gestation. Unfortunately, despite intensive cardiopulmonary resuscitation efforts, the neonate expired within less than one hour after delivery. Diagnosis of a bilateral diaphragmatic Bochdalek hernia was confirmed during the autopsy report and was evidenced by chest x-rays and clinical course. The autopsy revealed pulmonary aplasia/hypoplasia with weight being 12.8% of normal lung weight. Hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, nephromegaly and abdominal contents were in the bilateral pleural cavities.
UNASSIGNED: This case report can be used to guide health care practitioners who come across neonates presenting with possible signs and symptoms of a rare but severe case of bilateral CDH. Management with enhanced prenatal care and hospital resources is needed to improve the chances of successful resuscitation in a neonate that presents with bilateral CDH.

Short-term and midterm data suggest that mesenteric defects closure during laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) surgery reduces the risk of internal herniation with small bowel obstruction (SBO) but may increase risk of kinking of the jejunojejunostomy in the early postoperative period. However, to our knowledge, there are no clinical trials reporting long-term results from this intervention in terms of risk for SBO or opioid use.
To evaluate long-term safety and efficacy outcomes of closure of mesenteric defects during LRYGB.
This randomized clinical trial with a 2-arm, parallel, open-label design included patients with severe obesity scheduled for LRYGB bariatric surgery at 12 centers in Sweden from May 1, 2010, through November 14, 2011, with 10 years of follow-up after the intervention.
During the operation, patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to closure of mesenteric defects beneath the jejunojejunostomy and at the Petersen space using nonabsorbable running sutures during LRYGB or to nonclosure.
The primary outcome was reoperation for SBO. New incident, chronic opioid use was a secondary end point as a measure of harm.
A total of 2507 patients (mean [SD] age, 41.7 [10.7] years; 1863 female [74.3%]) were randomly assigned to closure of mesenteric defects (n = 1259) or nonclosure (n = 1248). After censoring for death and emigration, 1193 patients in the closure group (94.8%) and 1198 in the nonclosure group (96.0%) were followed up until the study closed. Over a median follow-up of 10 years (IQR, 10.0-10.0 years), a reoperation for SBO from day 31 to 10 years after surgery was performed in 185 patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 14.9%; 95% CI, 13.0%-16.9%) and in 98 patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 7.8%; 95% CI, 6.4%-9.4%) (subhazard ratio [SHR], 0.42; 95% CI, 0.32-0.55). New incident chronic opioid use was seen among 175 of 863 opioid-naive patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 20.4%; 95% CI, 17.7%-23.0%) and 166 of 895 opioid-naive patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 18.7%; 95% CI, 16.2%-21.3%) (SHR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.73-1.11).
This randomized clinical trial found long-term reduced risk of SBO after mesenteric defects closure in LRYGB. The findings suggest that routine use of this procedure during LRYGB should be considered.
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01137201.

BACKGROUND: Abdominal pain after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) is a common and unwanted complication that typically leads to further exploration through radiology. Concerns have been raised regarding the consequences of this radiation exposure and its correlation with the lifetime risk of cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in computed tomography (CT) use between LRYGB patients with open and closed mesenteric defects and to assess the radiological findings and radiation doses.
METHODS: This subgroup analysis included 300 patients randomized to either closure (n = 150) or nonclosure (n = 150) of mesenteric defects during LRYGB. The total number of CT scans performed due to abdominal pain in the first 5 postoperative years was recorded together with the radiological findings and radiation doses.
RESULTS: A total of 132 patients (44%) underwent 281 abdominal CT scans, including 133 scans for 67 patients with open mesenteric defects (45%) and 148 scans for 65 patients with closed mesenteric defects (43%). Radiological findings consistent with small bowel obstruction or internal hernia were found in 31 (23%) of the scans for patients with open defects and in 18 (12%) of the scans for patients with closed defects (p = 0.014). The other pathological and radiological findings were infrequent and not significantly different between groups. At the 5-year follow-up, the total radiation dose was 82,400 mGy cm in the nonclosure group and 85,800 mGy cm in the closure group.
CONCLUSIONS: Closure of mesenteric defects did not influence the use of CT to assess abdominal pain.

Internal hernia (IH) is one of the critical complications after gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction, which can be prevented by closing mesenteric defects. However, only few studies have investigated the incidence of IH after laparoscopic total gastrectomy (LTG) with Roux-en-Y reconstruction for gastric cancer till date. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of defect closure for the prevention of IH after LTG.
This multicenter, retrospective cohort study collected data from 714 gastric cancer patients who underwent LTG with Rou-en-Y reconstruction between 2010 and 2016 in 13 hospitals. We evaluated the incidence of postoperative IH by comparing closure and non-closure groups of Petersen\'s defect, jejunojejunostomy mesenteric defect, and transverse mesenteric defect.
The closure group for Petersen\'s defect included 609 cases, while the non-closure group included 105 cases. The incidence of postoperative IH in the closure group for Petersen\'s defect was significantly lower than it was in the non-closure group (0.5% vs. 4.8%, p < 0.001). The closure group for jejunojejunostomy mesenteric defect included 641 cases, while the non-closure group included 73 cases. The incidence of postoperative IH in the closure group of jejunojejunostomy mesenteric defect was significantly lower than that in the non-closure group (0.8% vs. 4.1%, p = 0.004). Out of 714 patients, 41 underwent retro-colic reconstruction. No patients in the transverse mesenteric defect group developed IH.
Mesenteric defect closure after LTG with Roux-en-Y reconstruction may reduce postoperative IH incidence. Endoscopic surgeons should take great care to prevent IH by closing mesenteric defects.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this multicenter cohort study was to compare the clinical courses between open and laparoscopic Petersen\'s hernia (PH) reduction.
METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical data of patients who underwent PH repair surgery after gastrectomy for gastric cancer from 2015-2018. Forty patients underwent PH reduction operations that were performed by six surgeons at four hospitals. Among the 40 patients, 15 underwent laparoscopic PH reduction (LPH), and 25 underwent open PH reduction (OPH), including 4 patients who underwent LPH but required conversion to OPH.
RESULTS: We compared the clinical factors between the LPH and OPH groups. In the clinical course, we found no differences in operation times or intraoperative bowel injury, morbidity, or mortality rates between the two groups (p > 0.05). However, the number of days on a soft fluid diet (OPH vs. LPH; 5.8 vs. 3.7 days, p = 0.03) and length of hospital stay (12.6 vs. 8.2 days, p = 0.04) were significantly less in the LPH group than the OPH group. Regarding postoperative complications, the OPH group had a case of pneumonia and sepsis with multi-organ failure, which resulted in mortality. In the LPH group, one patient experienced recurrence and required reoperation for PH.
CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic PH reduction was associated with a faster postoperative recovery period than open PH reduction, with a similar incidence of complications. The laparoscopic approach should be considered an appropriate strategy for PH reduction in selected cases.

Internal herniation is a well known and potentially life-threatening complication of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB). The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefit and harm of closing the mesenteric defects with clips during LRYGB to prevent internal herniation.
This was a single-centre, single-blinded RCT. Patients eligible for LRYGB were randomized to surgery with or without closure of mesenteric defects with clips. The primary endpoint was the incidence of (intermittent) internal herniation after LRYGB with a minimum follow-up of 24 months. Secondary outcomes were duration of surgery, number of clips used, trocars and sutures used, postoperative pain measured by a visual analogue scale (VAS), and postoperative complications.
Between 13 August 2012 and 18 May 2017, 401 patients were randomized to closure (201) or non-closure (200) of mesenteric defects. Median follow-up for both groups was 59 months (range 8-67 and 16-67 months in non-closure and closure groups respectively). The cumulated risk of internal herniation after 2 years was 8.0 per cent in the non-closure group compared with 4.5 per cent in the closure group (hazard ratio (HR) 1.81, 95 per cent c.i. 0.80 to 4.12; P = 0.231). At 5 years, rates were 15.5 and 6.5 per cent respectively (HR 2.52, 1.32 to 4.81; P = 0.005). Closure of mesenteric defects increased operating time by a median of 4 min (95 per cent c.i. 52 to 56 min for the non-closure group and 56 to 60 min for the closure group; P = 0.002). There was no difference in postoperative blood transfusion rates and VAS scores between the groups.
Routine closure of the mesenteric defects in LRYGB with clips is associated with a lower rate of internal herniation. Registration number: NCT01595230 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov).