Cook Medical received some good news from a study assessing the durability, strength, and resistance to infection of the company’s Biodesign Hernia Graft. The study followed 116 patients over five years post implantation, and here is a summary from the abstract:
All procedures were laparoscopically with two techniques [intraperitoneal onlay mesh (IPOM) and two-layered “sandwich” repair]. Mean follow-up was 52 ± 20.9 months. Thirty-nine cases were in an infected field and the rest in a potentially contaminated field. Ninety-one procedures were performed concurrently with a contaminated procedure. Twenty-five presented as intestinal obstruction, 16 strangulated hernias, and 17 required small bowel resection; 29 were inguinal hernias, 57 incisional, and 38 umbilical. In 13 patients more than two different hernias were repaired. Eighty-five percent 5-year follow-up was achieved, during which we identified 7 recurrences, 11 seromas (all resolved), and 10 patients reporting mild pain. Six second looks were performed and in all cases except one the mesh was found to be totally integrated into the tissue with strong scar tissue corroborated macro- and microscopically.
Conclusions: In our experience the use of small intestine submucosa mesh in contaminated or potentially contaminated fields is a safe and feasible alternative to hernia repair with minimal recurrence rate and satisfactory results in long-term follow-up.
Press release: New Study Reconfirms Long-Term Strength of Biodesign™ Hernia Graft
Abstract in Surgical Endoscopy: The use of porcine small intestinal submucosa as a prosthetic material for laparoscopic hernia repair in infected and potentially contaminated fields: long-term follow-up
Flashback: Cook Medical’s Biodesign Hernia Graft…