De Garengeot's hernia: acute appendicitis in a femoral hernia. Case report and literature overview.

Migration of the appendix vermiformis into a femoral hernia is also known as De Garengeot's hernia. We report the case of an elderly patient who was diagnosed with an acute appendicitis within a strangulated femoral hernia sac. Emergency incision and abscess drainage was performed, followed by delayed laparoscopic appendectomy and herniorraphy. Both procedures were uneventful and the patient fully recovered. Although exceedingly rare, the surgeon needs to be aware of this entity to prevent a delay in diagnosis with potentially serious adverse events.