• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer

Log in
  • Search
    • Search All SAGES Content
    • Search SAGES Guidelines
    • Search the Video Library
    • Search the Image Library
    • Search the Abstracts Archive
www.sages.org

SAGES

Reimagining surgical care for a healthier world

  • Home
    • Search
    • SAGES Home
    • SAGES Foundation Home
  • About
    • Awards
    • Who Is SAGES?
    • Leadership
    • Our Mission
    • Advocacy
    • Committees
      • SAGES Board of Governors
      • Officers and Representatives of the Society
      • Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs
      • Committee Rosters
      • SAGES Past Presidents
  • Meetings
    • SAGES NBT Innovation Weekend
    • SAGES Annual Meeting
      • 2026 Scientific Session Call for Abstracts
      • 2026 Emerging Technology Call for Abstracts
    • CME Claim Form
    • SAGES Past, Present, Future, and Related Meeting Information
    • SAGES Related Meetings & Events Calendar
  • Join SAGES!
    • Membership Application
    • Membership Benefits
    • Membership Types
      • Requirements and Applications for Active Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Affiliate Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Associate Active Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Candidate Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for International Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements for Medical Student Membership
    • Member Spotlight
    • Give the Gift of SAGES Membership
  • Patients
    • Join the SAGES Patient Partner Network (PPN)
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • Healthy Sooner – Patient Information for Minimally Invasive Surgery
    • Choosing Wisely – An Initiative of the ABIM Foundation
    • All in the Recovery: Colorectal Cancer Alliance
    • Find A SAGES Surgeon
  • Publications
    • Sustainability in Surgical Practice
    • SAGES Stories Podcast
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • Patient Information From SAGES
    • TAVAC – Technology and Value Assessments
    • Surgical Endoscopy and Other Journal Information
    • SAGES Manuals
    • MesSAGES – The SAGES Newsletter
    • COVID-19 Archive
    • Troubleshooting Guides
  • Education
    • Wellness Resources – You Are Not Alone
    • Avoid Opiates After Surgery
    • SAGES Subscription Catalog
    • SAGES TV: Home of SAGES Surgical Videos
    • The SAGES Safe Cholecystectomy Program
    • Masters Program
    • Resident and Fellow Opportunities
      • MIS Fellows Course
      • SAGES Robotics Residents and Fellows Courses
      • SAGES Free Resident Webinar Series
      • Fluorescence-Guided Surgery Course for Fellows
      • Fellows’ Career Development Course
    • SAGES S.M.A.R.T. Enhanced Recovery Program
    • SAGES @ Cine-Med Products
      • SAGES Top 21 Minimally Invasive Procedures Every Practicing Surgeon Should Know
      • SAGES Pearls Step-by-Step
      • SAGES Flexible Endoscopy 101
    • SAGES OR SAFETY Video Activity
  • Opportunities
    • Fellowship Recognition Opportunities
    • SAGES Advanced Flexible Endoscopy Area of Concentrated Training (ACT) SEAL
    • Multi-Society Foregut Fellowship Certification
    • Research Opportunities
    • FLS
    • FES
    • FUSE
    • Jobs Board
    • SAGES Go Global: Global Affairs and Humanitarian Efforts
  • OWLS/FLS
You are here: Home / Abstracts / Symptomatic Inguinal and Umbilical Hernias in the Emergency Department: Opportunity Lost?

Symptomatic Inguinal and Umbilical Hernias in the Emergency Department: Opportunity Lost?

Andrew T Bates, MD, Jie Yang, PhD, Maria Altieri, Chencan Zhu, BS, Salvatore Docimo, Jr., DO, Konstantinos Spaniolas, MD, Aurora Pryor, MD. Stony Brook University Hospital

Introduction: Patients with symptomatic inguinal and umbilical hernias often present to the emergency department (ED) when their symptoms change or increase, usually not requiring emergent surgery. However, little is known about how often these patients present prior to eventual repair and whether they undergo surgery at the initial presenting institution. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical flow of patients presenting in the ED for inguinal and umbilical hernia.

Methods: All patients presenting to EDs in New York State from 2005 to 2014 with symptomatic inguinal and umbilical hernias were identified using the New York State longitudinal hospital claims database (SPARCS). Patients were followed for records of hernia repair and subsequent inpatient and outpatient visits up to 2014.

Results: 42,950 patients presenting to the ED for symptomatic inguinal hernia were identified. 5.3% (2,297) of ED presentations resulted in inpatient admissions. 14,491 (33.7%) had repair later and their average time from ED presentation to inguinal hernia repair was 158(±351) days. 90.1% of patients who did not have subsequent surgery had only one ED visit. Of those that underwent interval repair, 79.7% had only one ED visit prior to surgery. For those patients with only one ED visit before repair, 29.3% had repair at a different hospital, as opposed to 48.6% if multiple ED visits were made. 15,297 umbilical hernia patients presenting to the ED were identified. 7.2% (1,109) resulted in inpatient admission. 3,507 (22.9%) had interval repair, with the average time from ED presentation to umbilical hernia repair being 175(±369.82) days. 92% of patients who did not record of later repair presented to the ED once. Of those patients who underwent repair, 78.5% did so after one ED visit.  For those patients with only one ED visit before repair, 32.9% had repair at a different hospital, as opposed to 48.6% if multiple ED visits were made.

Conclusion: A majority of patients with symptomatic inguinal and umbilical hernias that present to the ED do so once with no subsequent follow-up or repair. For those patients that undergo interval repair, a significant portion willnopt for surgery at other hospitals. A significant proportion of patients with acutely symptomatic inguinal/umbilical hernias who undergo interval repair after a previous ED visit, will opt for definitive surgery at another hospital facility. This represents a missed opportunity for continuity of care for providers and healthcare systems.


Presented at the SAGES 2017 Annual Meeting in Houston, TX.

Abstract ID: 87887

Program Number: P073

Presentation Session: iPoster Session (Non CME)

Presentation Type: Poster

41

Share this:

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket
  • Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon
  • Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads
  • Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky

Related


sages_adbutler_leaderboard

Hours & Info

11300 West Olympic Blvd, Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064

1-310-437-0544

[email protected]

Monday – Friday
8am to 5pm Pacific Time

Find Us Around the Web!

  • Bluesky
  • X
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2025 · SAGES · All Rights Reserved

Important Links

Healthy Sooner: Patient Information

SAGES Guidelines, Statements, & Standards of Practice

SAGES Manuals