Laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy for complete rectal prolapse: A retrospective study evaluating outcomes in North Indian population

Aim: To analyze the outcomes of laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy in the management of complete rectal prolapse (CRP) in North Indian patients with inherent bulky and redundant colon.

Methods: The study was conducted at a tertiary health care center of North India. Between January 2010 and October 2014, 15 patients who underwent laparoscopic ventral mesh repair for CRP, were evaluated in the present study. Perioperative outcomes, improvement in bowel dysfunction or appearance of new complications were documented from the hospital records maintained prospectively.

Results: Fifteen patients (9 female) with a median age of 50 years (range, 15-68) were included in the study. The median operative time was 200 min (range, 180-350 min) and the median post-operative stay was 4 d (range, 3-21 d). No operative mortality occurred. One patient with inadvertent small bowel injury required laparotomy on post-operative day 2. At a median follow-up of 22 mo (range, 4-54 mo), no prolapse recurrence was reported. No mesh-related complication was encountered. Wexner constipation score improved significantly from the preoperative value of 17 (range, 5-24) to 6 (range, 0-23) (P < 0.001) and the fecal incontinence severity index score from 24 (range, 0-53) to 2 (range, 0-53) (P = 0.007). No de novo constipation or fecal incontinence was recorded during the follow-up. On personal conversation, all patients expressed satisfaction with the outcome of their treatment.

Conclusion: Our experience indicates that laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy is an effective surgical option for CRP in North Indian patients having a bulky redundant colon.