Umbilical herniorrhaphy with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in pigs (sus scrofa domesticus): pilot study

Objective.To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of PVC on umbilical herniorrhaphy in pigs.Materials and methods. We used 16 clinically healthy pigs of both sexes, aged between 2 and 3 months, Landrace and Landrace x Pietran breeds with an average weight of 20 kg. Inclusion criteria were based on the clinical diagnosis of umbilical hernia. Herniorrhaphy was carried using PVC as a prosthetic material. The implantation of the material was made between parietal peritoneum and abdominal muscles by creating a pocket in 360°, with a depth of five centimeters. For the fixation of the bag, 35 pounds of pressure polyamide was used with “U” points in the fascio-muscular package (four stitches overall), the knots were two centimeters next to the ring, avoiding inverted edges with sustained traction. The size of the PVC bag depended on the size of the ring, but it was constantly rounded and four centimeters larger than the edge of the ring. The parameters evaluated for 15 days were temperature, edema, wound color and dehiscence, and relapse, fistula and appetite for 2 months. Results. An average local temperature of 37.5°C was obtained. Tumor halos of one centimeter at 24 hours post-surgery with involution towards the end of the evaluation. 100% of the animals healed by first intention. 87.5% did not present recurrence of the hernia. 100% did not present signs compatible with fistula or granuloma. Appetite was normal. Conclusions. During the evaluation period, PVC proved to be effective in the correction of umbilical hernias in pigs.