A retrospective review of surgical experience with contralateral exploration of inguinal hernia in children was made on 59 patients from September 1991 to August 1992 at the Department of Surgery, Guro Hospital, Korea University. 59 patients of
inguinal
hernia were explored at contralateral inguinal area among the operated 135 pateints due to the inguinal hernia under the age of 15 years old. Among the 135 patients, the sites of hernias at admission were 69 in right 56 in left, 10 in both sides.
So the
ratio of right to left was 1.2:1 and bilateral inguinal hernia was 7%. Among the 59 patients with contralateral exploration case, 36 patients with right inguinal hernias were explored on left side and 23 patients with left inguinal hernias were
explored
on right sides. In the left side exploration group under the age of 5 years old, 24 patients had patent processus vaginalis, so the positive finding was 67%. In the right side exploration group, 6 patients (26%) had such finding. About 50% of
patients
with contralateral exploration cases were positive.
The 3 patients of left inguinal hernia were previously operated on right side inguinal hernia. So the true contralateral occurrence of inguinal hernia were 2.2% in this report.
Recurrent inguinal hernia was observed in 1 patient who was operated on left side previously in other private clinic and admitted to our hospital due to the same site of hernia. Incarcerated inguinal hernias, 7 patients (5%) were treated by
manual
reduction initially. There were no strangulated hernias in our study.
Conclusively we recommand contralateral exploration with the caution in the patient of unilateral inguinal hernia of childhood, especially to the patients who have inguinal hernia under the age of 5 years old.
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