PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Cathal Hayes
AU  - Karl Schmidt
AU  - Yuwaraja Neduchelyn
AU  - Ivan Ivanovski
TI  - Obturator hernia of Richter type: a diagnostic dilemma
AID  - 10.1136/bcr-2020-238252
DP  - 2020 Dec 01
TA  - BMJ Case Reports
PG  - e238252
VI  - 13
IP  - 12
4099  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/13/12/e238252.short
4100  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/13/12/e238252.full
SO  - BMJ Case Reports2020 Dec 01; 13
AB  - An 85-year-old malnourished woman presented with symptoms of small bowel obstruction of uncertain aetiology. She had presented numerous times over the previous 2 years with symptoms of left groin and thigh pain, vomiting and abdominal distension. A CT of her abdomen and pelvis ultimately revealed a left-sided pelvic hernia, between the obturator internus and pectineal muscles. This was consistent with an obturator hernia. Diagnostic laparoscopy confirmed an obturator hernia of Richter type, incarcerated within the left obturator canal. Reduction revealed a hernia sac containing viable small bowel. A primary repair was performed using a double-layer suture technique to both close and plug the hernia defect. The patient rapidly recovered following hernia repair, with resolution of all previous long-standing symptoms. This case exemplifies the typical presentation of an obturator hernia and the diagnostic challenge it poses to clinicians.