Objective:To investigate the diagnosis and treatment of emergency inguinal hernia.Methods:The retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted. The clinical data of 236 patients with emergency inguinal hernia who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from January 2015 to May 2020 were collected. There were 194 males and 42 females, aged (69±30)years. Hospitalized patients received routine blood biochemistry test and imaging examinations for evaluation of characteristics of hernia contents and intestinal obstruction. Manual reduction and surgical treatment were selected according to the conditions of patients. Observation indicators: (1) treatment; (2) follow-up. Follow-up using outpatient examination and telephone interview was performed to detect hernia recurrence and late-onset mesh infection up to August 2020. Measurement data were described as M (range) or M ( P25, P75), and comparison between groups was analyzed using the Wilcoxon rank sum test. Count data were represented as absolute numbers, and comparison between groups was done using the chi-square test. Results:(1) Treatment: of the 236 patients, 106 cases had successful manual reduction, 124 cases underwent emergency operation, 6 cases refused surgery. ① For 106 cases with successful manual reduction (including 4 cases guided by B-ultrasonography), the manual reduction time was 5 minutes (2 minutes,7 minutes). Ninety-three of 106 patients underwent selective operation after manual reduction, including 89 cases with indirect hernia, 2 cases with direct hernia and 2 cases with compound hernia. The time to selective operation was 3 days(2 days,5 days) after manual reduction. Patients underwent mesh repair, of which the operation time, volume of intraoperative blood loss, time to postoperative first flatus, duration of postoperative hospital stay were 44 minutes (29 minutes, 66 minutes),10 mL(5 mL,20 mL), 1 day(1 day,2 days), 1 day(1 day,2 days), respectively. Eleven patients didn't undergo selective operation. Two patients with abdominal pain and fever after manual reduction were diagnosed with perforation of intestine by emergency surgical exploration, and then underwent partial intestinal resection combined with high ligation of hernial sac. ② There were 93 of 124 patients undergoing emergency operation with indirect hernia, 18 cases with femoral hernia, 6 cases with obturator hernia, 6 cases with compound hernia and 1 case with direct hernia. There were 54 of 124 patients undergoing open operation, including 21 cases with Bassini surgery, 18 cases with Lichtenstein surgery, 9 cases with Mc Vay surgery, 6 cases with high ligation of hernia sac. There were 70 patients undergoing laparoscopic operation, including 57 cases with laparoscopic transperitoneal preperitoneal hernia repair (TAPP), 10 cases with laparoscopic explora-tion + tissue repair and 3 cases with laparoscopic exploration + closure of inner inguinal ring. The operation time, volume of intraoperative blood loss, time to postoperative first flatus, cases with short-term postoperative complications were 60 minutes (50 minutes,76 minutes), 20 mL(14 mL,30 mL), 2 days(1 day,2 days), 15 cases for patients undergoing open surgery, respectively. The above indicators were 56 minutes (47 minutes,77 minutes), 20 mL(10 mL,25 mL), 2 days(1 day,2 days), 21 cases for patients under-going laparoscopic surgery. There was no significant difference in the above indicators between the two groups ( Z=?0.88, ?1.37, ?1.56, χ2=0.07, P>0.05). Cases with intraoperative placement of mesh and duration of hospital stay were 18 cases and 5 days(3 days,8 days) for patients undergoing open surgery, versus 57 cases and 3 days(2 days,5 days) for patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery, showing significant differences between the two groups ( χ2=29.50, Z=?4.32, P<0.05). (2) Follow-up: of 236 patients, 192 were followed up for 2?60 months, with a median follow-up time of 19 months. Seven patients had recurrence of hernia after emergency operation, including 3 with high ligation of the hernia sac, 2 with Bassini surgery, 1 with Lichtenstein surgery, and 1 with laparoscopic exploration + closure of inner inguinal ring. One patient with late-onset mesh infection after Lichtenstein surgery was improved after mesh removal. No long-term complications such as hernia recurrence or late-onset mesh infection occurred to the 184 patients. Conclusions:Emergency inguinal hernia had different state of illness, manual reduction is suitable for partial patients with incarceration. Surgery is the first choice, and the surgical procedure needs to be individually selected.