When I am in the clinic, I often get inquiries from parents who need surgery for their child’s inguinal hernia, but there are two types of surgery: general surgery and minimally invasive surgery. According to common understanding, minimally invasive surgery, as the name suggests, is an operation with minimal trauma. In clinical work, the concept of minimally invasive surgery is still somewhat different from the common understanding. Minimally invasive surgery in clinical practice generally refers to laparoscopic surgery, in which a hole (about 0.5-1 cm in diameter) is made in the abdomen and instruments are inserted into the abdominal cavity to complete the surgical operation. Some surgeries that originally required a direct operation through an incision in the abdomen can now be performed through perforation, which is much less invasive than the original, hence the term minimally invasive surgery. So when one’s child has a pediatric inguinal hernia, which type of surgery is appropriate? Two different ways to patch the hole If we compare the abdominal cavity to a bucket with a lid, then an inguinal hernia is a small hole at the bottom of the bucket that is leaking and needs to be patched up. We can patch this hole in two ways. The first way is to lift the bucket and fix the hole from the outside of the bucket, which is the common surgical method for inguinal hernia. The second way is to lift the lid of the barrel and fix the hole from inside the barrel, this method is laparoscopic surgery. The location of the incision is different So which method is better? If we look at the size of the incision, ordinary surgery has only a small scar in the groin area of about 1 cm in length, while laparoscopic surgery has a small scar at the belly button, which is about the same size, and perhaps the laparoscopic scar is a little more hidden. Anesthesia risks are different In terms of anesthesia, laparoscopic surgery anesthesia is a little more complex, while general surgery is relatively simple. Conclusion There is a considerable body of research in the professional literature that reports similar results for both surgical approaches. Each approach has its own characteristics and is not a substitute for the other. My experience I have performed many cases of both surgical approaches and personally, if there is no particular reason, I generally prefer the general surgical approach. Laparoscopic surgery requires intubation, pneumatization of the abdomen, and insertion of the laparoscope through the umbilicus into the abdominal cavity, which is a little more complicated, but has the advantage of facilitating intra-abdominal exploration to see if the other side of the hernia is also present and can be repaired at the same time. The incision is only one centimeter and is glued without sutures, so that after a period of time the incision scar is not clearly visible in non-scarred children. If there is a need to repair the episiotomy or a spermatic cord effusion, they can be explored and treated at the same time, which is not possible with laparoscopic surgery. The key to surgery depends on the surgeon’s proficiency in both surgical approaches Even after parents learn so much about the surgical approach, they may still have difficulty choosing a surgical approach. After all, it is the surgeon’s proficiency in both surgical procedures that determines the final outcome. Parents are advised to listen to the surgeon’s choice and trust that the surgeon will make the best choice for you based on the actual situation of the child and his or her skills.