Content area
Full Text
Correspondence to Mr Brendan Berry, [email protected]
Description
Despite femoral hernias being rarer than other groin hernias, records suggest they almost exclusively occur in older women, where the femoral ring is wider.1 Due to the angle and narrow entry of the femoral canal, femoral hernias are typically more prone to incarceration.2
This case report demonstrates a very rare presentation of a femoral hernia containing an incarcerated ovary in a relatively young woman.
A 41-year-old multiparous, premenopausal woman presented to accident and emergency with a 24-hour history of sudden onset left groin pain associated with a new plum sized mass. She felt nauseous, although denied any vomiting or change in her bowel pattern.
On examination, a 4 cm irreducible mass was located immediately inferior to the left inguinal ligament, one-third the way from the pubic tubercle to the anterior superior iliac spine. The mass was firm, well circumscribed and exquisitely tender on palpation. No bowel sounds were heard over the mass, despite normal bowel sounds being heard over the umbilicus. The rest of her abdomen was soft and non-tender with no signs of peritonism.
The patient’s general observations remained entirely normal. Her blood test demonstrated normal inflammatory markers (lactate 1.1, C -reactive protein 3, white cell count 10). Her urine dip and beta human chorionic gonadotropin tests were both negative.
Figure 1 highlights the CT scan that was undertaken to assess the left groin mass. The image demonstrates a small left groin hernia through either...