Impact of Biosynthetic Mesh on Paraesophageal Hernia Repair

August 18, 2026 updated by: Weill Medical College of Cornell University

The Impact of Biosynthetic Mesh on Paraesophageal Hernia Repair in Robotic Anti-Reflux Surgery: A Multi-Institutional Randomized Trial

The aim of this study is to find out if using a certain kind of mesh can reduce the chances of hiatal hernias coming back after anti-reflux surgery. Participants undergoing antireflux surgery will be assigned to one of two groups, a group that has surgery with mesh, or a group that has surgery without mesh.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
200

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90089
        • Withdrawn
        • University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine
    • Louisiana
      • New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, 70112
        • Withdrawn
        • Louisiana State University School of Medicine
    • Missouri
      • St Louis, Missouri, United States, 63110
        • Withdrawn
        • Washington University School of Medicine
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10065
        • Recruiting
        • Weill Cornell Medicine
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Rasa Zarnegar, MD
        • Contact:
      • New York, New York, United States, 10075
        • Not yet recruiting
        • Lenox Hill Hospital
        • Contact:
          • Mattia Ballo, MD
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Filippo Filicori, MD
      • New York, New York, United States, 10016
        • Not yet recruiting
        • NYU Langone Health
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Tanuja Damani, MD
        • Contact:
          • Luis Espinosa, MD

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Documented diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease
  • Adults aged 18 years or older
  • English speaking
  • Subject is planned to undergo surgery for reflux disease

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Physician deems the subject is unable to complete the study due to documented dementia.
  • Subject is undergoing emergent surgery.
  • Pregnancy
  • Patient has known allergy to tetracycline hydrochloride or kanamycin sulfate

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Biosynthetic Mesh
The biosynthetic mesh group will undergo hiatal hernia repair with Phasix Mesh (Becton Dickinson, Franklin Lakes, NJ) reinforcement, secured with permanent suture. This is a biosynthetic mesh that completely reabsorbs in 12-18 months after surgery. The mesh is designed to provide strength during the initial healing phase after hernia repair, allowing for rapid tissue ingrowth and vascularization, gradually transferring the load to native tissue as it resorbs1. This mesh has been FDA approved for procedures involving soft tissue repair, such as hernia defects.
Device: Biosynthetic Mesh
The biosynthetic mesh group will undergo hiatal hernia repair with Phasix Mesh (Becton Dickinson, Franklin Lakes, NJ) reinforcement, secured with permanent suture.
Procedure: Hiatal Hernia Repair
The non-mesh group will undergo hiatal hernia repair with permanent suture only.
Active Comparator: No Mesh
The non-mesh group will undergo repair with permanent suture only.
Procedure: Hiatal Hernia Repair
The non-mesh group will undergo hiatal hernia repair with permanent suture only.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Anatomic hiatal hernia recurrence rate
Time Frame: 1 year
1 year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Anatomic Hiatal Hernia Recurrence rate
Time Frame: 3 years
3 years
Anatomic Hiatal Hernia Recurrence rate
Time Frame: 5 years
5 years
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 2 weeks postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
2 weeks postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 6 months postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
6 months postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 1 year postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
1 year postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 2 years postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
2 years postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 3 years postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
3 years postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 4 years postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
4 years postoperatively
Reflux Symptoms
Time Frame: 5 years postoperatively
Reflux symptoms will be assessed using the gastroesophageal reflux disease health related quality of life survey (GERD-HRQL). The highest possible score on this survey is 75, indicating daily incapacitating symptoms in all areas assessed. The lowest possible score is 0, indicating no symptoms.
5 years postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 2 weeks postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
2 weeks postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 6 months postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
6 months postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 1 year postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
1 year postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 2 years postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
2 years postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 3 years postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
3 years postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 4 years postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
4 years postoperatively
Dysphagia Symptoms
Time Frame: 5 years postoperatively
Dysphagia symptoms will be assessed using the Bazaz dysphagia score. The lowest dysphagia severity score being "none", indicating no difficulty swallowing. The highest dysphagia severity score being "severe", indicating frequent difficulty swallowing with the majority of foods.
5 years postoperatively
Number of subjects requiring 30 day readmission
Time Frame: 30 days following surgery
30 days following surgery
Number of subjects requiring reoperation
Time Frame: 30 days following surgery
30 days following surgery
Number of subjects developing postoperative Infection
Time Frame: 30 days following surgery
30 days following surgery

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Weill Medical College of Cornell University

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Intuitive Surgical

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Rasa Zarnegar, MD, Weill Medical College of Cornell University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 10, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 1, 2030

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 30, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 30, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 5, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 19, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 18, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 23-11026766

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings