Patient-Reported Outcomes and Long-Term Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Single-Port Versus Conventional Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernia Repair

Background Surgical techniques for inguinal hernia repair have evolved rapidly from open methods to conventional laparoscopic totally extra-peritoneal (CTEP) and recently single-port TEP (STEP). As there is currently no randomized controlled trial (RCT) reporting long-term patient-reported outcomes between CTEP and STEP, we reviewed patients who were randomized to CTEP or STEP 5 years after surgery. Methods Telephone interviews were administered to patients with primary unilateral inguinal hernia recruited for the RCT comparing CTEP and STEP in 2011. The modified Body Image Questionnaire was used to measure long-term patient-reported outcomes. Results Forty-two out of forty-nine of the STEP group and forty-one out of fifty of the CTEP group responded to phone interviews. Median follow-up time, demographic data and clinical outcomes were comparable between both groups. The Body Image Score (5–20: 5—least dissatisfied, 20—most dissatisfied; BIS score ± SD, STEP vs. CTEP, 5.33 ± 0.90 vs. 7.17 ± 1.87, p