Umbilical hernia

Many hernias never cause any problems, and do not require any treatment at all. However, because the risk of complications with age are higher and the hernia is unlikely to resolve without treatment, surgery is usually recommended.^[2]

Usually hernia has content of bowel, abdominal fat or omentum, tissue that normally would reside inside the abdominal cavity if it wasn't for the hernia. In some cases, the content gets trapped in the hernia sac, outside the abdominal wall. The blood flow to this trapped tissue may be compromised, or the content even strangulated in some cases. Depending on the severity and duration of blood flow compromise, it can cause some pain and discomfort. Usually the situation resolves itself, when the protrusion of content is returned to the abdominal cavity. Sometimes this needs to be done by a doctor at the ICU.^[14]

If the hernia content get trapped combined with severe pain, inability to perform bowel movement or pass gas, swelling, fever, nausea and/or discoloration over the area, it could be signs of a prolonged compromise in blood flow of the hernia content. If so, emergency surgery is often required, since prolonged compromise in blood flow otherwise threatens organ integrity.^[14]

Hernias that are symptomatic and disturb daily activity, or hernias that have had episodes of threatening incarceration, preventive surgical treatment can be considered. The surgery is performed under anaesthesia, while the surgeon identifies the edges of the defect and bring them together permanently using either suture or mesh.^[15] Small umbilical hernias are often successfully repaired with suture, while larger hernias may require a suitable mesh,^[16] although some surgeons advocate mesh treatment for most hernias. The most common complications for both techniques are superficial wound infections, recurrence of the hernia^[17] and some people experience pain from the surgical site.^[18]