European Hernia Society

What European Hernia Society does

The European Hernia Society (EHS) is a Denmark-domiciled, non-profit professional medical society founded in 1979 and headquartered in Frederiksberg/Copenhagen, dedicated to advancing the diagnosis and treatment of hernia and abdominal wall surgery. It serves general and laparoscopic surgeons specialising in hernia and abdominal wall reconstruction across Europe, with secondary audiences including hernia patients, stoma care nurse specialists, and surgical residents/medical students. The society operates through a secretariat managed by CAP Partner and maintains an active presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, and YouTube.

The EHS's core offerings are organized into five pillars: Science (evidence-based clinical guidelines covering groin, ventral, incisional, diastasis recti, and scrotal hernia, plus three active clinical registries — the EHS Hernia Registry, Prevention Registry, and Open Abdomen Registry — for outcomes data collection); Education (a structured Basic/Intermediate/Advanced Education Pathway culminating in UEMS Certification, a Knowledge Library of educational videos, Travel and Extended Stay Grants, and the SPARK Academy research initiative); Events (annual international congresses pre-booked through 2027, plus specialised Parastomal Study Days and cadaveric hands-on courses); Publications (the official peer-reviewed Journal of Abdominal Wall Surgery, JAWS); and Membership/Community (the Hernia Family Book, Humanitarian Missions, Honorary Diploma, Find UEMS Surgeons directory, and Patient Area with multilingual leaflets and a Patient Support Group).

The EHS generates revenue through three streams: recurring membership subscriptions that grant access to the Knowledge Library, journal, and grants; one-time event registration fees tiered by member status, profession, and course type (e.g., €270–€350 for EHS-member delegates at the 2027 Parastomal Study Days, €100 for residents, €50 for nurses and patients, up to €1,350 for full hands-on + conference registration); and tiered corporate sponsorships anchored by a Platinum Corporate Alliance program with BD, Medtronic, and Intuitive Surgical, supplemented by Premium sponsors (W.L. Gore, Lawmed, TelaBio). The go-to-market motion is event-driven and community-led, relying on the annual congress, multi-society collaborations (ESCP, British Hernia Society, ACPGBI), a network of affiliated and associated national societies, and word-of-mouth within the surgical community. Pricing is publicly disclosed only for specific events; membership fees are not published.

Name

European Hernia Society

Legal name

European Hernia Society

Website

https://europeanherniasociety.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The European Hernia Society is a Denmark-based non-profit medical society, founded in 1979, that sets clinical guidelines, runs three outcomes registries, delivers certified surgical education, and publishes the JAWS journal for hernia and abdominal wall surgeons across Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Frederiksberg

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership subscriptions: The EHS generates revenue through annual membership fees, which provide access to the Knowledge Library, journals, grants, and other member benefits.
2. Event registration fees: Revenue is generated from registration fees for congresses, study days, and educational courses. These include early-bird and regular-fee tiers for delegates, residents, nurses, and patients.
3. Sponsorships and corporate alliances: The EHS generates revenue through its Platinum Corporate Alliance program and other sponsorship tiers for events, congresses, and educational programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The European Hernia Society (EHS) is a non-profit professional medical association that advances hernia and abdominal wall surgery through clinical guidelines, structured education pathways, clinical data registries, peer-reviewed journals, and international congresses. It sells membership subscriptions to surgeons, charges registration fees for congresses and specialized study days, and secures sponsorship revenue from medical device companies through its Platinum Corporate Alliance programme. The society also offers travel and research grants, a Knowledge Library of educational videos, UEMS-accredited certification, and patient-facing educational resources in multiple languages.

Product overview

The European Hernia Society (EHS) operates as a professional medical society offering a comprehensive ecosystem of products and services for hernia surgeons and patients. The core offerings include clinical registries (EHS Registry, Prevention Registry, Open Abdomen Registry) for data collection and research, the Knowledge Library with educational videos, and a structured Education Pathway with Basic, Intermediate, Advanced courses plus UEMS Certification. The society publishes evidence-based clinical Guidelines, operates the JAWS Journal of Abdominal Wall Surgery, and organizes annual Congresses including EHS 2027 in Antwerp and EHS 2026 in Porto. Additional services include Travel Grants for surgical training visits, specialized Parastomal Study Days courses, a Patient Area with educational videos and multilingual leaflets, the Hernia Family Book storytelling initiative, Humanitarian Missions, and the Honorary Diploma program. These products collectively support the EHS mission to advance hernia surgery through education, research, and professional development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• JAWS (Journal of Abdominal Wall Surgery): The official journal of the European Hernia Society facilitating scientific expression for surgeons interested in abdominal wall surgery

Products and services

• EHS Registry

Quantifiable outcome

• The EHS Knowledge Library includes a large number of educational videos accessible free of charge by members.

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered platinum, core and premium.

• BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company)platinumGTM or Marketing PartnerBD is a Platinum Corporate Alliance partner of the EHS. The partnership supports EHS educational programmes, patient information videos (YourHernia), and the society's overall mission to advance hernia surgery. BD is also listed as a sponsor for EHS events.
• MedtronicplatinumGTM or Marketing PartnerMedtronic is a Platinum Corporate Alliance partner of the EHS, sponsoring educational activities and events. The partnership also includes endorsement of HerniaBasecamp, an online hernia education initiative.
• Intuitive Surgical (ISRG)platinumGTM or Marketing PartnerIntuitive Surgical is a Platinum Corporate Alliance partner of the EHS, contributing to the society's educational and research activities related to robotic hernia surgery.
• European Society of Coloproctology (ESCP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerESCP is a collaboration partner for the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2027, bringing together colorectal surgeons and hernia specialists for multidisciplinary education on parastomal hernia management.
• W.L. Gore & AssociatespremiumGTM or Marketing PartnerW.L. Gore & Associates is a premium sponsor of the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2027, supporting the event financially and aligning with the society's educational mission.
• LawmedpremiumGTM or Marketing PartnerLawmed is a premium sponsor of the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2027.
• TelaBiopremiumGTM or Marketing PartnerTelaBio is a premium sponsor of the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2027.
• British Hernia SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe British Hernia Society is a collaborating society for the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2025, held in Manchester, UK.
• Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland (ACPGBI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACPGBI is a collaborating organization for the EHS Parastomal Study Days 2025, representing 1000+ surgeons, nurses, and allied health professionals in Britain and Ireland.
• EHS Affiliated and Associated SocietiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe EHS maintains a network of affiliated and associated national hernia societies across Europe and globally, fostering collaboration, shared guidelines, and international congress participation.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• European Society of Coloproctology (ESCP): Pan-European society for coloproctology that partners with EHS on parastomal hernia education; comparable as a multidisciplinary European surgical society with overlapping surgeon membership and shared event programming.
• European Digestive Surgery (EDS) / Société Française de Chirurgie Pariétale: French national society dedicated to abdominal wall (parietal) surgery, closely aligned with EHS in scope; operates as a peer society in its home geography and engages in cross-border hernia collaboration.

Direct peers

• American Hernia Society: The principal U.S. counterpart to EHS, focused on hernia and abdominal wall surgery with its own guidelines, education, and annual meeting; directly comparable as a national/regional hernia-specific professional society.
• Asia-Pacific Hernia Society (APHS): Regional society representing hernia surgeons across Asia-Pacific; analogous structure to EHS with guidelines, congresses, and educational programmes, serving a different geography.
• British Hernia Society: National hernia society for the UK and Ireland that collaborates with EHS on parastomal study days; shares the same hernia-only mission, guidelines focus, and surgeon membership model.
• HerniaSurge Group: International guideline-development collaboration for groin hernia treatment that EHS surgeons participate in; comparable as a hernia-focused guideline authority operating across multiple societies.

Broad incumbents

• European Association for Endoscopic Surgery (EAES): Broader European society for minimally invasive and endoscopic surgery; overlaps with EHS on laparoscopic and robotic hernia techniques but addresses multiple GI/abdominal procedures beyond hernia.
• Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES): Large North American surgical society whose remit includes hernia among many GI procedures; comparable as a mature society with guidelines, FLS-style certification, and industry sponsorships, though not hernia-exclusive.

Others

• UEMS (Union of European Medical Specialists) – Surgical Section: European umbrella body that issues the certification EHS aligns with through its Education Pathway; relevant as the credentialing authority whose standards shape EHS's educational offering and surgeon mobility.

Emerging players

• EuraHS (European Registry of Abdominal Wall Hernias): Hernia-focused outcomes registry initiative active across European centers; overlaps with EHS registries and represents an alternative/adjacent data-collection platform in the same hernia domain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/eurohernias
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCnFM2rvtymtJKPv27GRGeJw
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/european-hernia-society
• Instagraminstagram.com/eurohernias

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about European Hernia Society