Guideline-discordant care among females undergoing groin hernia repair: the importance of sex as a biologic variable

• Published in: Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery Vol. 26; no. 3; pp. 823 - 829
• Main Authors: Ehlers, A. P., Thumma, J. R., Howard, R., Davidson, G. H., Waljee, J. F., Dimick, J. B., Telem, D. A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Paris Springer Paris 01.06.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abdominal Surgery; Chronic pain; Females; Hernia; Hernias; Males; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Article; Patients; Quality control; Surgery; Surveys; Groin hernia; Inguinal hernia; Sex as a biological variable; Guideline concordance
• ISSN: 1265-4906; 1248-9204
• DOI: 10.1007/s10029-021-02543-0

Purpose Females suffer higher rates of operative recurrence and chronic pain following groin hernia repair. Guidelines recommend minimally invasive (MIS) groin hernia repair as the preferred approach to reduce these adverse outcomes. It is unknown what proportion of females receive MIS hernia repair. Therefore, our goal was to investigate adoption of evidence-based practices in groin hernia repair using sex as a biological variable. Methods Retrospective cohort study of adults undergoing elective groin hernia repair (2014–2019) within a statewide quality improvement collaborative. Primary outcome was surgical approach. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to analyze the likelihood of undergoing MIS hernia repair. Secondary outcomes were 30-day adjusted rates of clinical and patient-reported outcomes (PROs). PROs included regret to undergo surgery among patients who completed post-operative surveys. Results Among 23,723 patients, the majority (90.7%) were males. Compared to males, females less often underwent an MIS surgical approach (37.4% vs 45.1%, p  < 0.0001). After adjustment for patient and clinical variables, females remained significantly less likely to undergo MIS groin hernia repair (aOR 0.88, 95% CI 0.80–0.97). Adjusted clinical outcomes were not different between males and females. Among 4325 patients who completed post-operative surveys, adjusted rates of regret to undergo surgery were higher among females (12.9% vs 8.5%, p  = 0.003). Conclusions Even after adjusting for differences, females were less likely to receive guideline-concordant groin hernia repair and were more likely to regret surgery. Understanding the behaviors of surgeons who treat females with groin hernia may inform quality metrics to promote best practices in this population.