Chronic pain after groin hernia repair: pain characteristics and impact on quality of life.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) after hernia repair research has mainly relied on unconfirmed self-reporting. We aimed to describe confirmed CPSP incidence, management, and quality of life (QoL) in a 2-year prospective study. METHODS:Multicenter study (GENDOLCAT) of 3890 patients undergoing 4 common surgical procedures in 23 hospitals to develop a risk model for CPSP; 2352 men underwent open hernia repair. Patients with pain were identified by telephone at 1 and 3?months and referred to the hospital 4?months after surgery for a physical examination to confirm CPSP. Three validated tools were used: the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) for severity, analgesic use, and interference with activities; the SF-12 questionnaire for QoL (validated Spanish version), and the Douleur Neuropathique 4 (DN4). Patients with CPSP were called again at 1 and 2?years. RESULTS:In 1761 patients who underwent hernia repair and were eligible for physical examination for CPSP, the incidence of confirmed pain at 4?months was 13.6% (patient-reported pain, 6.2% at 1?year and 4.0% at 2?years). Neuropathic pain was diagnosed in 38.5% of the CPSP patients at 4?months. The incidences of neuropathic CPSP in patients with mesh or non-mesh repairs were similar (38.6 and 33.3%, respectively). SF-12 physical component scores changed little in all patients, whether or not they developed CPSP. The SF-12 mental component decreased significantly in all patients, but the decrease was clinically significant only in CPSP patients. CPSP interfered with activities (18%), work (15.6%), walking (15%) and mood (10.2%). At 2?years 52.1% of CPSP patients had moderate/intense pain and 28.2% took analgesics. CONCLUSION:CPSP affects QoL-related activities, and although it diminishes over the course of 2?years after surgery, many patients continue to have moderate/intense pain and take analgesics. CPSP and neuropathic pain rates seem to be similar after mesh and non-mesh repair. BPI and SF-12 mental component scores detect effects on QoL. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01510496.

SUBMITTER: Bande D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7336434 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature