Objective: Rare disease Background: Ureteroinguinal hernias are exceptionally rare and are seldom diagnosed in the preoperative setting. There are 2 classifications of this type of hernia: paraperitoneal and extraperitoneal. Case Report: We report a case of a 67-year-old man who presented with urinary symptoms and a reducible right inguinal hernia. A computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen and pelvis suggested an ureteroinguinal hernia. Further diagnostics and treatment via cystoscopy, retrograde pyelogram, and right ureteral stent placement were performed, confirming the diagnosis and providing relief of the obstructive uropathy. The patient underwent an attempted elective transabdominal preperitoneal repair that was converted to an open Lichtenstein repair. Intraoperatively, an extraperitoneal ureteroinguinal hernia was identified. The patient did well postoperatively, and the stent was removed 1 month later. Conclusions: Only 20% of the ureteroinguinal hernias described in the literature are extraperitoneal. In our case presentation, we demonstrated successful identification and treatment of an extraperitoneal ureteroinguinal hernia. The diagnosis was made using a combination of the clinical presentation, CT of the abdomen and pelvis, and cystoscopy with retrograde pyelogram. The extraperitoneal classification was an intraoperative diagnosis. The treatment consisted of a temporizing ureter stent and definitive management with an open Lichtenstein repair. We recommend obtaining a CT scan when a patient presents with a combination of urinary symptoms and an inguinal hernia because this process was invaluable in our preoperative diagnosis. Stent placement at the time of diagnosis permitted an elective repair and aided in the identification of the ureter during the hernia repair.

Internal hernias are an uncommon cause of small bowel obstruction and present a challenging clinical diagnostic scenario. They result from the abnormal protrusion of an abdominal organ through a peritoneal defect and can cause intermittent obstructive symptoms, diffuse abdominal discomfort, and postprandial pain. Paraduodenal hernias comprise 53% of all internal hernias 1 and occur due to failure of the fixation of either the left or transverse mesocolon to the posterior abdominal wall. Its relative rarity results in mortality between 20 and 50% 2 because of delayed diagnosis and consequent obstruction, strangulation, and bowel ischemia. Our case series describes three patients before and after operative fixation of paraduodenal hernia. Only one of the three was identified by preoperative radiologist interpretation. Subsequent diagnosis and definitive treatment were completed by surgical staff to resolve undiagnosed undulating abdominal pain and obstructive-type symptoms. We further analyze left-sided paraduodenal hernias after laparoscopic and robotic repair to define common symptomatology, typical CT findings, and preferred laparoscopic repair techniques.