Tumescent local anesthetic technique for inguinal hernia repairs

Purpose: We evaluated the adequacy and feasibility of a tumescent solution containing lidocaine and bupivacaine for inguinal hernia repairs.

Methods: The medical records of 146 consecutive inguinal hernia patients with 157 hernia repairs using the tumescent local anesthesia technique performed by a single surgeon between September 2009 and December 2013 were retrospectively reviewed.

Results: The mean operation time (±standard deviation) and hospital stay were 64.5 ± 17.6 minutes and 2.7 ± 1.5 days. The postoperative complication rate was 17.8%. There were four cases of recurrences (2.5%) at a mean follow-up of 24 ± 14 months.

Conclusion: Our results suggest that local anesthesia with the tumescent technique is an effective and safe modality for inguinal hernia repairs.