The missed diagnosis of femoral hernias in females undergoing inguinal hernia repair – A systematic review and proportional meta-analysis

Given the 4-times higher prevalence of femoral hernias among females compared to males, this diagnosis may be missed during inguinal hernia repair (IHR), causing risk of reoperation for pseudo recurrence of femoral hernias (FH). Minimally invasive approaches are suggested as potential reducers of missed FH since they provide a posterior view of all defect areas, despite studies suggesting that women receive less MIS than men. We aim to assess the missed FH during IHR and after reoperation for recurrence following IHR in women.

PubMED, Cochrane, and EMBASE databases were searched for studies assessing patients undergoing recurrent IHR, analyzing the incidence of reoperation for FH and occult femoral hernias during IHR. Statistical analysis was performed using R software.

From 6,226 records, 10 retrospective observational studies were included, totaling 15,863 patients (20% females). We found that 19.56 per 100 women (95% CI 8.34, 39.37) who are reoperated for an inguinal hernia are found as having a FH during the new repair. Compared to men, women were at a significantly higher risk to be reoperated for FH after IHR (RR 8.97; 95% CI 7.35, 10.93; P < 0.001). Our analysis also showed that 20.7% of females received MIS approaches for groin hernia repair, while 79.3% received open procedures. Furthermore, our study found a pooled incidence of occult FH during the initial IHR of 6.85 per 100 patients for both genders (95% CI 2.78, 15.90), which increased to 21.42 per 100 patients when assessing females only (95% CI 15.46, 28.89).

Females have a higher incidence of FH following reoperation for recurrence of inguinal hernia repair. Added to the high rate of occult FH encountered during inguinal procedures, this suggests a missed diagnosis of FH during IHR. The adoption of MIS IHR for women is fundamental to reduce the underdiagnosis of FH.