ArticleSurgical endoscopy2017
Is old age a contraindication to elective ventral hernia repair?
Article in Surgical endoscopy, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- EAES/SAGES evidence-based recommendations and expert consensus on optimization of perioperative care in older adults.Surgical endoscopy · 2024Guideline
- Laparoscopic treatment of ventral hernias: the Italian national guidelines.Updates in surgery · 2023Guideline
- Age-Related Risk Factors in Ventral Hernia Repairs: A Review and Call to Action.The Journal of surgical research · 2021Pooled it
- Patient expectations and decisional regret in the management of ventral hernias.Surgical endoscopy · 2025Trial
- Randomized control trial evaluating the use of a shared decision-making aid for older ventral hernia patients in the Geriatric Assessment and Medical Preoperative Screening (GrAMPS) Program.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2022Trial
- Traumatic abdominal wall hernias: A 15-year single-center experience in diagnosis and management.Surgery today · 2026Article
- Polypharmacy is predictive of postoperative complications in older adults undergoing ventral hernia repair.Surgical endoscopy · 2022Article
- Comparison of outcomes of laparoscopic hernioplasty with and without fascial repair (IPOM-Plus vs IPOM) for ventral hernia: A retrospective cohort study.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2022Article
- Perioperative outcomes of the Geriatric Assessment and Medical Preoperative Screening (GrAMPS) program pilot for older hernia patients: does chronological age predict outcomes?Surgical endoscopy · 2022Article
- Geriatric assessment and medical preoperative screening (GrAMPS) program for older hernia patients.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2022Article
- Laparoscopic versus open ventral hernia repair in the elderly: a propensity score-matched analysis.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2021Article
- An early experience with transversus abdominis release for complex ventral hernias: a retrospective review of 100 cases.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2021Article
- Evaluation of the use of component separation in elderly patients: results of a large cohort study with 30-day follow-up.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2020Article
- Robotic ventral hernia repair in octogenarians: perioperative and long-term outcomes.Journal of robotic surgery · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundVentral hernia repair (VHR) is a frequent problem in the expanding aging population. However, advanced age is often viewed as a contraindication to elective hernia surgery. We aimed to analyze outcomes of VHR in a large cohort of elderly patients. We hypothesized that elective VHR is safe and effective even in patients over 70 years old.
methodsWe conducted a retrospective review of consecutive patients over the age of 70 who underwent VHR at a at a tertiary care hospital. Main outcome measures included postoperative complications and recurrence rate.
resultsBetween 2006 and 2015, 263 elderly patients who underwent elective VHR were included. Major comorbidities included diabetes, COPD, and smoking history. The majority of the patients underwent open repairs. Surgical site events occurred in 54 patients (21%). Postoperative complications included 17 venous thromboembolism occurrences, 2 myocardial infarctions, 41 patients who required postoperative critical care, and 1 mortality. Readmission within 90 days postoperatively occurred in 34 patients (13%). At a mean follow-up of 25.6 months, 17 patients in the open group and 6 patients in the laparoscopic group had a recurrence.
conclusionWe demonstrated that VHR can be performed reasonably safely and effectively even in this potentially risky cohort. The use of laparoscopy might be associated with further reduction in morbidity. Overall, age should not be a contraindication to elective VHR, even in patients over 70 years old.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.