Stapled haemorrhoidopexy for the treatment of haemorrhoids: a review of our experience

Introduction: There have been a great number of articles published on the method of treatment for haemorrhoid disease with a circular stapler introduced by Longo. However, there are very few studies devoted to assessment of this procedure in the Polish literature. Aim: To perform a retrospective evaluation of early and long-term results of surgical treatment with a circular stapler for haemorrhoid disease. Material and methods: The study involved 141 patients operated on with a circular stapler for haemorrhoid disease (Longo’s method): 69 (48.9%) were women and 72 (51.1%) men, aged from 25 to 75 (49.9 years old on average). The follow-up time from the surgery ranged from 1 to 6.7 years (mean 3.8 years). Results: Complications occurred in 33 patients (23.4%) intra-operatively, in 10 (7.5%) during the early post-operative period, and late complications developed in 14 patients (9.9%). Seven patients (5.0%) required re-intervention mucoprolapsectomy after primary Longo’s method operation. On the day of surgery 12 patients (8.5%) did not need any analgesics, 98 patients (69.5%) required only 1-4 doses of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and 43 (30.4%) needed additional weak opioids. None of the patients demanded analgesics from the fifth day on. Duration of hospitalization after the surgery ranged from 2 to 9 days, an average of 3.6 days. Time to return to normal activities of life ranged from 1 day to 4 weeks and averaged 10.8 days. The result of the treatment was assessed as very good or good in 127 patients (90.1%), sufficient in 6 patients (4.3%), and inadequate in 8 patients (5.7%). Conclusions: Longo’s method can be recommended for surgical treatment of haemorrhoid disease, and provides both short- and long-term satisfactory results.