Contralateral exploration for unilateral inguinal hernia in females: risk factors and surgical findings

Background Controversy continues over the need to explore the asymptomatic contralateral groin in girls with unilateral inguinal hernia. The aim of this study is to identify the incidence and risk factors of developing a contralateral inguinal hernia. Materials and methods Between July 1997 and July 2006, 364 consecutive girls aged between 1 month and 8 years with unilateral inguinal hernia underwent surgical exploration of the contralateral inguinal side. Inclusion criteria were created. After collection of the surgical findings, the authors analysed the correlation between the patients’ medical history and the incidence of contralateral inguinal hernias. The patients were then divided into eight groups following an age range grouping. Results One hundred and eighteen patients were enrolled in this study, 74 with right-side inguinal hernia and 44 with left-side inguinal hernia. About 47.4% of these patients showed contralateral true inguinal hernias, 38% right-sided and 63% left-sided hernias. There was no correlation between medical history, age at surgery and the presence of contralateral inguinal hernia. Conclusions Although the results of this study are in contrast with many other studies in the literature, the authors came to the conclusion that contralateral exploration should be routinely performed in girls with inguinal hernia until they reach 4 years of age.