FIELD HERNIOPLASTY USING PVC INSECT SCREEN MESH FOR TRAUMATIC VENTRAL ABDOMINAL HERNIA IN A JERSEY CROSSBRED COW IN BHUTAN: A CASE REPORT

Abstract

A six-year-old female Jersey crossbred cow weighing approximately 300–350 kg from Ngarpongtang village, Thangrong Gewog, Mongar Dzongkhag, was referred to the District Veterinary Hospital, Mongar, for further treatment of a voluminous abdominal swelling. The owner reported that the swelling developed after a fall from a cliff. Clinical examination confirmed a soft, reducible right lateral ventral abdominal hernia with a large hernial sac in the absence of ultrasonographic facilities. The hernial contents comprised loops of the large and small intestines. Surgical correction was performed under field conditions in lateral recumbency using xylazine and local infiltration anesthesia with 2% lignocaine hydrochloride. Before insertion, the Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) insect screen mesh, which is locally available in hardware shops, was prepared aseptically by thoroughly washing with detergent, rinsing with normal saline, and soaking in povidone-iodine solution. Hernioplasty was performed by securing the prepared mesh over the hernial defect with non-absorbable suture material in a simple interrupted pattern following manual reduction of the hernial contents. After surgery, the wound was managed using gamma benzene hexachloride cream after an antiseptic dressing, followed by broad-spectrum antibiotics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for seven days. The animal made a full recovery and was confirmed to be pregnant within three months of surgery, displaying full restoration of productive function. This case illustrates that hernioplasty using PVC insect screen mesh can be executed satisfactorily under resource-limited field conditions in Bhutan.