Narrative Case Report of Postherpetic Pseudoabdominal Hernia

Herpes zoster pseudoabdominal hernia (HZV-PAH) is a rare but easily misdiagnosed complication after varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection, which is essentially a neurogenic muscle dysfunction rather than a true hernia. HZV-PAH refers to the dysfunction of nerves innervating abdominal wall muscles (especially the transversus abdominis and internal oblique muscles) caused by VZV invasion of intercostal or lumbar nerves, leading to local muscle relaxation, paralysis, or bulging (1), resulting in local bulging of the abdominal wall. This disease is relatively rare, with only less than 2% of cases of abdominal pseudo-hernia reported following herpes zoster infection (2), mostly occurring in elderly patients with herpes zoster, those with low immunity, or those with extensive involvement of dermatomes.