Cardiovascular Complications of Large Hiatal Hernias: Expanding the Indications for Robotic Surgical Anatomic and Physiologic Repair: A Review

Background: Historically, the pathophysiology of Hiatal Hernias (HH) has not been fully understood. As a result, the surgical therapy of HH has focused primarily on gastrointestinal symptoms and Gastroesophageal Reflux (GERD). This treatment strategy has been associated with poor relief of symptoms and poor long-term outcomes. In fact, until recently, most patients with HH have been watched and referred for surgery as a last resort. Recent experience has shown that a large (giant) Hiatal Hernia (GHH) is a common problem known to impact adjacent organs such as the hearts and lungs. Those referred for surgical repair often complain of dyspnea, which is erroneously attributed to pulmonary compression or aspiration, but has been shown to be from tamponade caused from compression of the heart by herniated abdominal contents. This article reviews the present understanding of GHH, the cardiac complications which result from GHH, and the most advanced robotic minimally invasive surgical approach to the anatomic and physiologic repair of GHH. Methods: In a prospective cohort study, we evaluated patients undergoing RRHH with at least a 2-year follow-up. All patients undergoing elective (RRHH) were identified preoperatively and enrolled prospectively in this study. Preoperative characteristics, medical comorbidities, and clinical information were all recorded prospectively and recorded into a secure surgical outcomes database. All patients received the previously validated Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease-Health-Related Quality of Life (GERD-HRQL) questionnaire preoperatively and at postoperative time points of 1 month, 1 year, and 2 years. Patients routinely had a barium swallow postoperatively before discharge but did not undergo a barHow to cite this paper: Gharagozloo, F., Meyer, M. and Poston, R. (2022) Cardiovascular Complications of Large Hiatal Hernias: Expanding the Indications for Robotic Surgical Anatomic and Physiologic Repair: A Review. World Journal of Cardiovascular Surgery, 12, 39-69. https://doi.org/10.4236/wjcs.2022.123005 Received: February 12, 2022 Accepted: March 14, 2022 Published: March 17, 2022 Copyright © 2022 by author(s) and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/