Painful Abdominal Outpouching in an Adult Male

Abstract

Post-herpetic abdominal pseudohernia is a neurologic complication of herpes zoster resulting from paresis of the abdominal wall muscles ipsilateral to the eruption. This poorly known condition may raise suspicion for true abdominal wall hernia or other concerning etiologies, resulting in extensive work-up and imaging. Post-herpetic abdominal pseudohernia is a relatively benign condition, which resolves spontaneously in the majority of cases. Therefore, it is important for the clinician to be aware of this complication in order to avoid unnecessary imaging or excessive management, which may increase the cost of care and burden to the patient.

Postherpetic pseudohernia: A rare complication of herpes zoster

“…5 Supportive garments, physical therapy, and analgesia may offer symptomatic relief. 9 Abdominal pseudohernia is probably more prevalent than previously reported. Awareness of this unusual complication of a common disease can help physicians to better counsel their patients and potentially avoid unnecessary investigations.…”

“…In terms of treatment, 79.3% of patients will have shown spontaneous recovery after 1 year, with a mean recovery time of 4.9 months, with the remaining 20.7% having a partial resolution or no recovery 5 . Supportive garments, physical therapy, and analgesia may offer symptomatic relief 9 …”

Abdominal paresis and pseudo-hernia secondary to herpes zoster infection: A case report and systematic analysis

“…34 cases of abdominal pseudo-hernia due to herpes zoster infection were included. Their demographic data, clinical features, electrophysiological studies and imaging findings were summarized [ [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , [7] , [8] , [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] , [15] , [16] , [17] , [18] , [19] , [20] , [21] , [22] , [23] , [24] , [25] , [26] , [27] , [28] , [29] ]. ( Table 1 , Table 2 ) The median age of the patients was 71.5 (43–82) years.…”

“…The treatment of abdominal pseudo-hernia is primarily conservative and the prognosis is reported to be good in the literature [ [3] , [4] , [5] , [8] , [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] , [16] , [17] , [18] , 20 , [22] , [23] , [24] , [25] , [26] , [27] , [28] ]. Our study showed that the majority of patients (n = 21, 70%) recovered completely.…”

Post-herpetic abdominal pseudohernia – An uncommon/under-recognized complication of a common disease, herpes zoster – A case report

“…Zoster paresis can be seen in about 5% of all patients with HZ. [2] e most common somatic manifestation is Ramsay hunt syndrome due to facial nerve palsy. [3] Segmental paralysis of the limbs, diaphragm, and abdominal musculature can also occur.…”