Hernia Health Dictionary

Rupture. Swelling caused by an organ pushed out of its usual position into neighbouring tissues. Abdominal hernias may be inguinal, femoral or umbilical. An external hernia is when a part of the intestine protrudes through a weak spot in the abdominal wall. Vomiting, with pain over the affected area, indicates strangulation which calls for emergency hospital treatment. Hernias may be worse on coughing or straining at stool. For internal hernia, see: HIATUS HERNIA.

Treatment. Most abdominal hernias can be pushed back manually. Where this is not possible it is known as irreducible. Umbilical hernias in children usually disappear by the fourth year.

Alternatives. Teas. Fenugreek, Aloe Vera, Rupturewort. 1 teaspoon fresh or dried herb to each cup boiling water. Strain when cold. 1 cup thrice daily.

Lobelia. (Priest) Liquid Extract. 2-10 drops in water thrice daily. Thuja (infants). Liquid Extract. 1-2 drops in water thrice daily. Yarrow. (Wm Boericke MD)

Marshmallow root decoction. Traditional European.

Topical. Massage affected area with hot Castor oil (rotary motion), first to left, then to right. 2-3 tablespoons being absorbed by the body. Improvement may lead to athletic support in place of truss. (Wm A. McGarey MD)

Compress Comfrey root: pulp of fresh root. (Fletcher Hyde).

Witch Hazel packs, left in position day and night. Strangulated hernia. Put patient to bed, lying on his back, with head low, feet raised above level of body. Rub affected part with No 6 Thomson’s Compound, followed by Chickweed ointment. Give Thomson’s 3rd Preparation (Antispasmodic tincture); teaspoon doses in a cup of hot water every 20 minutes. After massage with the ointment for half an hour tissues relax and with gentle manual pressure the protrusion may be restored. (Sarah A. Webb MD) 

The protrusion of an organ or tissue through a weak area in the muscle or other tissue that normally contains it. The term is usually applied to a protrusion of the intestine through the abdominal wall. In a hiatus hernia, the stomach protrudes through the diaphragm and into the chest.

Abdominal hernias are usually due to a congenital weakness in the wall of the abdomen. The hernias may result from damage caused by lifting heavy objects, persistent coughing, or straining to defaecate, or may develop after an operation.There are several types of hernia, and they are classified according to their location in the body. The most important are inguinal hernias, which mainly affect men; femoral hernias, which are more common in overweight women; and umbilical hernias, which occur in babies.

The 1st symptom of an abdominal hernia is usually a bulge in the abdominal wall.

There may also be abdominal discomfort.

Sometimes the protruding intestine can be pushed back into place.

Severe pain occurs when the hernia bulges out and cannot be put back; surgery (see hernia repair) is usually necessary.

If the blood supply to a twisted, trapped portion of intestine becomes impaired (a strangulated hernia), gangrene of the bowel may develop.

A strangulated hernia requires urgent treatment.

Umbilical hernias in babies can usually be left untreated as they tend to disappear naturally by age 5.

The protrusion of an internal organ through a defect in the wall of the anatomical cavity in which it lies.

The protrusion of an organ, or part of an organ, through the wall of the cavity that normally contains it. The most common types of hernia involve the organs of the abdomen which can herniate externally through the abdominal wall, or internally usually through a defect in the diaphragm. External hernias appear as a swelling, covered with skin, which bulges out on coughing or straining but which can normally be made to disappear with gentle pressure.

Types Inguinal hernia appears in the groin; less common is femoral hernia, which appears just below the groin. Incisional hernia may occur through a defect in any abdominal surgical scar, a paraumbilical hernia arising just to the side of the umbilicus and an epigastric hernia in the mid line above the umbilicus. In children, herniation may occur through the umbilicus itself, which is a natural weak spot. The commonest internal hernia is a hiatus hernia, when part of the stomach slips upwards into the chest through the DIAPHRAGM (see diagram).

Site of inguinal hernia (shaded).

Causes Hernias may be due to a defect present at birth (congenital), or may develop later in life (acquired). Acquired hernias arise due to the development of a defect or injury of the abdominal wall or due to increased pressure within the abdominal cavity, which forces the organ through a potential weakness. Such causes include chronic coughing or excessive straining due to constipation.

Complications Small hernias may cause no problems at all. However, some may be large and cumbersome, or may give rise to a dragging sensation or even pain.

Although most reduce spontaneously under the effects of gravity or gentle pressure, any organs that may have been displaced inside some hernias may become stuck, when they are said to be irreducible. If the contents become so trapped that their blood supply is cut o?, then strangulation occurs. This is a surgical emergency because the strangulated organs will soon die or rupture. When strangulation – usually of a loop of intestine – does occur, the hernia becomes irreducible, red, and very painful. If the hernia contains bowel, then the bowel may also become obstructed.

Treatment Conservative treatment with a compression belt, or truss, is now used only for those un?t for surgery or while awaiting surgery. Surgical repair can be at an open operation or by laparoscope, and consists of returning the herniated organs to their proper place and then repairing the defect through which the hernia occurred. This may be done safely under local or general anaesthetic, often as a day-case procedure, and most operative repairs result in a permanent cure.

n. the protrusion of an organ or tissue out of the body cavity in which it normally lies. An inguinal hernia (or rupture) occurs in the lower abdomen; a sac of peritoneum, containing fat or part of the bowel, bulges through a weak part (inguinal canal) of the abdominal wall. It may result from physical straining or coughing. A scrotal hernia is an inguinal hernia so large that it passes into the scrotum; a femoral hernia is similar to an inguinal hernia but protrudes at the top of the thigh, through the point at which the femoral artery passes from the abdomen to the thigh. Other hernias of the abdominal wall include periumbilical, epigastric, and postsurgical hernias. A diaphragmatic hernia is the protrusion of an abdominal organ through the diaphragm into the chest cavity; the most common type is the hiatus hernia, in which the stomach passes partly or completely into the chest cavity through the opening (hiatus) for the oesophagus. This may be associated with *gastro-oesophageal reflux, although most patients have no symptoms.

Hernias may be complicated by becoming impossible to return to their normal site (irreducible); swollen and fixed within their sac (incarcerated); or cut off from their blood supply, becoming painful and eventually gangrenous (strangulated). The best treatment for hernias, especially if they are painful, is surgical repair (see hernioplasty).