Utility of drainage in incisional hernia repair with mesh

Introduction: Repair of incisional hernia presents a high rate of complications, seroma and surgical site infection are among the most frequent. Drains are often placed during the repair of an incisional hernia to facilitate leakage of the liquid and prevent the onset of complications. There is no consensus on its usefulness. Objective: Our objective was to find out whether the use of drainage in incisional hernia repair with mesh influences the appearance of complications. Methods: We carry out an observational cohort study, prospectively compared two groups of operated patients, some of them with drainage placement and some others without them. Results: We included 102 patients, 42 in the drainage group and 60 in the non-drainage group. We found in total 69 complications, the most frequent complication was the presence of seroma, followed by the infection of the surgical wound. Conclusions: The onset of complications in a surgical intervention depends on multiple factors; age, diabetes and nutritional status seem to be the most significant ones. Patients with high BMI (>= 30) and incisional hernias >= 10 cm developed more frequently wound complications. We do not find that the placement of drainage in the repair of incisional hernia with mesh influences the appearance of complications during the postoperative period.