A combined sternotomy/laparotomy approach in central tendon diaphragmatic hernia repair

Abstract

We describe a combined sternotomy/laparotomy approach as a novel technique in central tendon diaphragmatic hernia repair. During a routine second trimester prenatal ultrasound, a 19-year-old woman was found to have a fetus with a diaphragmatic hernia. Subsequent fetal MRI at 28 weeks demonstrated a large central tendon defect through which the majority of the liver was herniated. The fetus was closely followed until her delivery at 38 weeks. The patient was intubated shortly after delivery and treated for pulmonary hypertension. A thoraco-abdominal CT scan revealed a large, mushroom-shaped herniation of the liver. By day of life 7, the patient demonstrated physiological stability. Following a multidisciplinary meeting, the decision was made to proceed to surgery. A sternotomy with an upper midline laparotomy revealed the liver herniating through a central tendon defect without any hernia sac. The liver was reduced into the abdomen without kinks in the hepatic veins. The defect was then closed using a polytetrafluoroethylene patch. She did not develop any compartment syndrome despite pre-operative concerns. Post-operatively, she was weaned to conventional mechanical ventilation after brief requirement of high-frequency oscillatory ventilation, and subsequently extubated. A combined sternotomy/laparotomy provided an excellent operative exposure and may be effective in a large congenital central tendon diaphragmatic hernia repair.

Keywords

• Congenital diaphragmatic hernia
• Central tendon defect
• Sternotomy
• Laparotomy