Clinical Report: Automated Collection of Patient-Reported Outcomes for Inguinal Hernia Surgery

Overview

This single-centre pilot assessed the feasibility of automated patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) collection in routine elective inguinal hernia care, with follow-up planned through 2 years. The supplied article excerpt describes the study design and objective—measuring response rates at each follow-up point—but does not provide response-rate results or other study findings.

Background

Inguinal hernia repair is common, and the source reports approximately 30,000 procedures annually in the Netherlands. Clinical registries can capture routine-care data at scale, but the Dutch Inguinal Hernia Audit does not capture the patient perspective on outcomes such as chronic postoperative inguinal pain and recurrence. PROMs may add information about quality of life and physical functioning, although lengthy questionnaires and manual processing can burden patients and staff. The pilot evaluated automated email invitations and electronic-record synchronization as a way to integrate PROM collection into routine care.

Data Highlights

Key Findings

• The pilot was designed to assess whether automated PROMs could be incorporated into routine inguinal hernia care without healthcare personnel involvement or added administrative burden.
• Patients were sent secure automated email invitations to complete brief questionnaires at predetermined intervals; responses were synchronized with the electronic medical record.
• The primary outcome was the response rate at each follow-up time point, but the supplied excerpt does not report those rates.
• Eligible participants were adults undergoing elective TEP or Lichtenstein repair; emergency repairs and other procedures were excluded.
• Patients were excluded if either the preoperative or postoperative PROM invitation was missed, because the invitations were issued separately and the missed questionnaire could not be completed.
• The related article on mobile-app detection of postoperative complications describes the broader challenge of capturing patient-reported outcomes through conventional visits or telephone calls, but the supplied context provides no comparative results.

Clinical Implications

The source describes automated PROM collection as a potential means of reducing the administrative burden of collecting patient-reported data and making responses available for clinical review, audit, and research. The excerpt does not provide response rates or other feasibility results, so it does not establish whether the system achieved these aims.

Conclusion

This pilot was designed to evaluate automated PROM collection in elective inguinal hernia care through 2 years after surgery. The supplied material reports the rationale and methods but not the study’s response-rate findings.

Related Resources & Content

1. Article supplied in prompt, year not provided — Automated Collection of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures for Inguinal Hernia Surgery: A Single-Centre Pilot Study of Feasibility
2. HerniaSurge Group, BJS Open, 2023 — Update of the international HerniaSurge guidelines for groin hernia management
3. Hernia, 2024 — Utilizing a Mobile Application to Detect Postoperative Complications Following Inguinal Hernia Surgery: A Comparative Cohort Analysis
4. Hernia — Comparative Outcomes of Open Preperitoneal and Laparoscopic Approaches in Ambulatory Bilateral Groin Hernia Repair
5. Hernia — Comparative Analysis of Laparoscopic, Robotic, and Open Techniques for Posterior Mesh Inguinal Hernia Repairs: A Propensity Score Matched Study
6. Hernia — Study Design for the AFTERHERNIA Initiative: Evaluating Patient-Reported Outcomes Following Groin and Ventral Hernia Surgery
7. Update of the international HerniaSurge guidelines for groin hernia management
8. Utilizing a Mobile Application to Detect Postoperative Complications Following Inguinal Hernia Surgery: A Comparative Cohort Analysis
9. Update of the international HerniaSurge guidelines for groin hernia management | BJS Open | Oxford Academic
10. Comparison of postoperative chronic inguinal pain between the lichtenstein and laparoscopic techniques in the treatment of inguinal hernia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
11. Determining the Minimum Clinically Important Difference for the European Hernia Society Quality of Life Instrument in Inguinal Hernia Repair Patients - PubMed