Recertification confirms the quality of Bruch operations in Schärding

“We carry out around 300 hernia operations every year,” says Christoph Kopf, head of the surgical department at the Schärding Clinic.

Rupture of the abdominal wall is one of the most common surgical procedures. Fractures are a bulging of the peritoneum due to a congenital or acquired gap in the abdominal wall, four percent of people are affected in the course of their lives, according to the clinic.

Nowadays, numerous surgical methods and materials are available for the treatment of hernias: from open incision techniques with direct sutures and/or additional mesh reinforcement to a wide variety of laparoscopic methods. The Schärding Clinic can offer the entire spectrum of current surgical procedures.

For the patients, the current recertification means safety and the most modern hernia surgery in controlled quality. “Due to the certification, the demand has increased significantly in recent years. Around 70 percent of the operations involve the repair of an inguinal hernia, one of the most common types of hernia. There has also been a significant increase in the treatment of incisional hernias, which are among the most difficult types of hernia.” , says Primar Christoph Kopf. In order to record and document the quality level in hernia surgery, the Schärding Clinic takes part in the Herniamed quality assurance study of the German Society for Hernia Surgery.

The success of the treatment is analyzed based on the type and size of the fracture, the risk factors caused by any concomitant diseases and the type of operation performed. Criteria for success are wound healing, freedom from pain, short length of stay in the hospital and freedom from recurrence. “In order to be able to assess this, follow-up checks are carried out on all those patients who have voluntarily decided to take part in this quality study.”

Patients from the age of three are treated. “Fracture operations are often underestimated in terms of the level of difficulty. No surgical method is equally suitable for everyone affected, so that a tailor-made care concept must be created for each individual,” says Primar Kopf.