Preoperative Etanercept Before Inguinal Hernia Surgery

Summary

Inguinal hernia repair is one of the most frequently performed operations in young men. Persistent pain after inguinal surgery represents a significant cause of disability, occurring in between 15%-35% of cases. In a majority of these patients, their groin pain persisted after a previous hernia repair. The main type of chronic postsurgical pain is neuropathic, caused by injured nerves. One of the principal components in the pathophysiology of postsurgical pain is cytokines, specifically tumor necrosis factor (TNF). In animal studies, injecting TNF inhibitors before nerve injury can reduce pain behaviors and neuropathology. Finding a way to reduce the incidence of postsurgical pain after hernia repair could enhance function, and reduce the need for opioids and other analgesics. The investigators intend to conduct the first randomized, controlled study evaluating whether preemptive administration of a tumor necrosis inhibitor can reduce postoperative pain and opioid consumption after hernia repair. This is important because the degree and intensity of postsurgical pain is a major predictor for the development of chronic postsurgical pain.

Timeline

Start

2009-01

Primary completion

2011-11

Completion

2012-08

Publications

• Background Cheek CM, Black NA, Devlin HB, Kingsnorth AN, Taylor RS, Watkin DF. Groin hernia surgery: a systematic review. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 1998;80 Suppl 1:S1-80.
• Background Franneby U, Sandblom G, Nordin P, Nyren O, Gunnarsson U. Risk factors for long-term pain after hernia surgery. Ann Surg. 2006 Aug;244(2):212-9. doi: 10.1097/01.sla.0000218081.53940.01.
• Background Ferzli GS, Edwards E, Al-Khoury G, Hardin R. Postherniorrhaphy groin pain and how to avoid it. Surg Clin North Am. 2008 Feb;88(1):203-16, x-xi. doi: 10.1016/j.suc.2007.10.006.
• Background Sommer C, Kress M. Recent findings on how proinflammatory cytokines cause pain: peripheral mechanisms in inflammatory and neuropathic hyperalgesia. Neurosci Lett. 2004 May 6;361(1-3):184-7. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2003.12.007.

Drugs

Indications

No indication recorded.