HERNIA

A hernia is when an internal part of the body, such as an organ, pushes through a weakness in the muscle or surrounding tissue wall. Usually your muscles are strong and tight enough to keep your intestines and organs in place, but sometimes they are not, thereby causing a hernia.

TYPES OF HERNIA
a hernia can occur anywhere in the abdomen region. The most common types are:

• Inguinal hernia this occurs when tissue (usually part of the intestines) pokes through your lower abdomen. Inguinal hernias these are the most common type of hernia. In reported cases, 98% occur in men. Inguinal hernias can occur at any age, but they are primarily an age-related condition. The older you get, the more likely you are to develop one.

• Femoral hernia this occurs when tissue pokes through into your groin, or the top of your inner thigh. Femoral hernias these are less common than inguinal hernias, around three quarters of cases of femoral hernias occur in women.

• Incisional hernia this occurs when tissue pokes through a surgical wound or incision that has not fully healed. Incisional hernias these develop as a complication of abdominal surgery. The chance of an incisional hernia developing after surgery can vary from between 0.5-10%, depending on the type of surgery involved.
• Umbilical hernia this occurs when tissue pokes through the part of the abdomen near to the navel (belly button).Umbilical hernias these are very common in young children, with as many as one in six children being affected. Black children are 10 times more likely to develop an umbilical hernia than white children. The reasons for this are unclear. In most cases, an umbilical hernia will resolve as a child grows older, without the need for treatment.
• Other types are hiatus hernia, epigastric hernia and spingelian hernias.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS………….Some are asmptomatic, Swelling, pain, constipation, vomiting, something bulging out of the body, scrotal swelling.

CAUSES

• Congenital weakness of certain muscles…commonest cause is in children
• Chronic cough
• Those doing heavy works i.e carrying heavy loads are at risk labourers, farmers fall into this category.
• Children with certain congenital abnormalities

COMPLICATIONS…….these are medical emergencies that require urgent medical/surgical intervention. Obstruction in the bowel leading to Strangulation of affected organs and interruption of the blood supply to the intestines.

TREATMENT……….Due to the potential risks of these complications, surgery is usually recommended to repair the hernia. The surgery called herniorapphy or herniotomy.The only exception is umbilical hernias, as the risks of complications are thought too small to justify surgery.