Hiatoplasty with crura buttressing versus hiatoplasty alone during laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy

Introduction. In obese patients with hiatal hernia (HH), laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) with cruroplasty is an option but use of prosthetic mesh crura reinforcement is debated. The aim was to compare the results of hiatal closure with or without mesh buttressing during LSG. Methods. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) was assessed by the Health-Related Quality of Life (GERD-HRQL) questionnaire before and after surgery in two consecutive series of patients with esophageal hiatus ≤ 4 cm2. After LSG, patients in group A (12) underwent simple cruroplasty, whereas in group B patients (17), absorbable mesh crura buttressing was added. Results. At mean follow-up of 33.2 and 18.1 months for groups A and B, respectively (p = 0 006), the mean preoperative GERD-HRQL scores of 16.5 and 17.7 (p = 0 837) postoperatively became 9.5 and 2.4 (p = 0 071). In group A, there was no difference between pre- and postoperative scores (p = 0 279), whereas in group B, a highly significant difference was observed (p = 0 002). The difference (Δ) comparing pre- and postoperative mean scores between the two groups was significantly in favor of mesh placement (p = 0 0058). Conclusions. In obese patients with HH and mild-moderate GERD, reflux symptoms are significantly improved at medium term follow-up after cruroplasty with versus without crura buttressing during LSG.