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Commercial Mesh versus Nylon Mosquito Net for Hernia Repair. A Randomized Double-blind Study in Burkina Faso

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Abstract

Purpose

The goal of this study was to investigate whether locally available Nylon mosquito net might be a useful alternative to expensive commercial mesh implants for hernia repair, a clinical randomized double-blind study was performed.

Materials and Methods

Over a period of 3 months 35 patients with a total of 40 inguinal hernias were randomized for hernia repair with either a commercial graft (Ultrapro®) or a piece of sterilized 100% Nylon mesh available as mosquito net in most African village markets. The surgeons’ comfort in handling the meshes, the incidence of complications, and the patients’ quality of life before and 30 days after hernia repair were evaluated. In addition, the costs of the two materials were compared.

Results

There was no significant difference in the clinical short-term outcome of the hernia treatment or the surgeons’ comfort in handling the two different materials. The price of the locally bought Nylon mesh was 0.0043 US$ as compared to 108 US$ for the commercial mesh.

Conclusions

In situations where superior results of hernia repair depend on the use of a mesh prosthesis but where commercial material is not available or affordable, the use of Nylon mosquito net may be an alternative. Further studies with a larger number of patients and longer follow-up are justified and recommended.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for sponsorship and financial support of the academic exchange program between Burkina Faso and Siegen. Many thanks go to the entire staff of the surgical department in Ouagadougou, where the study was performed. We also gratefully acknowledge the editorial input of Reinhart Freudenberg.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, St. Marienkrankenhaus, Kampenstrasse 51, 75072 , Siegen, Germany

    Sebastian Freudenberg MD, PhD

  2. Département de Chirurgie Viscérale CHU Yalgado Ouedraogo, BP 2566, Ouagadougou 01, Burkina Faso

    Daman Sano MD, PhD & Edgar Ouangré MD

  3. Institute for Biostatistics, University Hospital Mannheim, Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer 1-3, 68135 , Mannheim, Germany

    Christel Weiss MD

  4. Department of Surgery, University Hospital Mannheim, Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer 1-3, 68135 , Mannheim, Germany

    Torsten J. Wilhelm MD, MSc

Authors
  1. Sebastian Freudenberg MD, PhD
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  2. Daman Sano MD, PhD
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  3. Edgar Ouangré MD
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  4. Christel Weiss MD
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  5. Torsten J. Wilhelm MD, MSc
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sebastian Freudenberg MD, PhD.

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Freudenberg, S., Sano, D., Ouangré, E. et al. Commercial Mesh versus Nylon Mosquito Net for Hernia Repair. A Randomized Double-blind Study in Burkina Faso. World J. Surg. 30, 1784–1789 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-006-0108-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-006-0108-3

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