Comparative study of wound complications: isolated panniculectomy versus panniculectomy combined with ventral hernia repair.

Background: The resection of an abdominal pannus carries the risk of wound-related morbidity in obese patients. Surgeons often perform a panniculectomy (PAN) to gain better access to the abdomen to perform other operations. We evaluated the incidence of wound complications after PAN with and without a concomitant procedure (i.e., ventral hernia repair [VHR]).

Methods: We reviewed the prospective data from all patients who underwent PAN alone and PAN combined with VHR from 2007 to 2011 at a single institution. The demographic data, operative information, and postoperative wound complications and interventions were recorded and analyzed using standard statistical methods. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to control for confounding factors.

Results: After excluding the patients who had undergone concomitant procedures involving the gastrointestinal or genitourinary tract, 185 patients were included in the present study (143 patients in the PAN-VHR group and 42 in the PAN group). The average patient age was 55.4 and 47.6 years in the two groups (P = 0.001). The average body mass index was 38.0 and 41.1 kg/m(2) (P = 0.69). Of the 143 patients in the PAN-VHR group, 81.1% were women. In the PAN group, 92.9% were women (P = 0.09). The mean length of follow-up was 6.5 and 3.3 mo in the PAN-VHR and PAN groups, respectively (P = 0.04). In the PAN-VHR group, 96.5% underwent hernia repair with mesh and 29% underwent component separation. Subcutaneous talc was used in 58.6% of the PAN-VHR patients and 38.1% of the PAN patients (P = 0.02). Wound pulse-a-vac irrigation with bacitracin solution was used in 37.1% of PAN-VHR patients and 19.1% of the PAN patients (P = 0.03). The rate of wound complications and interventions for the PAN-VHR and PAN groups were not significantly different statistically (P < 0.05) and included seroma, seroma drainage, wound breakdown or necrosis, cellulitis, wound interventions, including bedside debridement and vac placement, and reoperation. After controlling for age, gender, body mass index, talc use, and pulse-a-vac irrigation use in the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the PAN-VHR group were more likely to develop cellulitis than the PAN-alone group (P = 0.004). The rates of all other wound complications were not significantly different statistically between the two groups after adjusting for confounding factors.

Conclusions: PAN is associated with a significant risk of wound-related complications. The risk of postoperative cellulitis is increased further in patients who undergo concomitant VHR. However, the risk of all other wound complications and the need for interventions was not increased by performing concomitant VHR.