Lipomatous Lesion of the Spermatic Cord and Pediatric Inguinal Hernia

ABSTRACT

A lipomatous lesion of the cord is an accidentally encountered structure during the operative repair of inguinal hernia. This lesion has been reported as a lipoma of the cord in adults. However, there is only a limited number of reports in the pediatric age group. To evaluate the prevalence of this lesion in children and in order to review the surgical significancies, 600 hernia operations in 411 children during a period of 4 years from January, 2000 to December, 2003 in the Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, the Catholic University of Korea, were included in this study. There was a total of 31 (5.2%) lipomatous lesions in 25 (6.1%) cases; 3 cases in infants, 17 between 1 to 4 years, and 5 above 5 years of age. Male was more prevalent (male to female ratio 1411). The laterality of clinical hernia with the lesions was 10 in the right, 13 in the left and 2 in both sides. The patients with ipsilateral lesions to the hernia were 14, contralateral in 5 and bilateral in 6 cases. Excluding 1 case of bilateral lesions in bilateral hernia, 10 lesions were contralateral to the clinical hernias. In 1 case, lipomatous lesion was the sole finding with nonsignificant patent processus vaginalis. Every lesion was suture ligated and resected with gentle traction of the dissected hernia sac. It has not been clearly defined whether the lesion is a stopper or a provocator of the hernia development. However, removal is highly recommended to make a differential diagnosis from the recurrent inguinal hernia in future. The term "lipomatous lesion" seems to be pathologically accurate and must be differentiate from the true lipomas.