If a part of the bowel or fatty tissue bulges through an opening in your abdominal muscles near the belly button, it is an umbilical hernia. This condition can happen at any age, although it is more common in infants. When an infant begins to cry, it causes the belly button to protrude, making the umbilical hernia prominent. This condition normally resolves by its own in children whereas adults need to undergo surgery to get rid of this condition. The best laparoscopic surgeon near me treats many patients of umbilical hernia.
Symptoms
The appearance of an umbilical hernia is like a lump in the navel in both children and adults. When the infant is crying, laughing or coughing, the bulge becomes prominent. It is the same in adults also. Children do not normally feel any pain due to the hernia whereas a large hernia causes much pain in the adults.
You must seek medical help if:
- The bulge becomes painful
- There is vomiting
- The bulge becomes discoloured or swells up
Causes
When the foetus is in the developing stage, there is a small opening in the abdominal muscles. This allows the umbilical cord to connect the pregnant woman to her baby. In normal cases, the opening closes immediately or within a short time after childbirth. When this does not happen, part of the bowel or fatty tissue can protrude through the opening, thus leading to umbilical hernia.
The umbilical hernia forms in adults due to pressure on the abdominal wall. This pressure results in the protruding of a part of the bowel or fatty tissue through a weak section of the abdominal muscles.
Diagnosis
A complete physical examination helps the doctor to detect an umbilical hernia. There can be a risk of obstruction if the hernia involves the bowel. He/she may suggest an abdominal ultrasound, CT scan, X-ray or blood tests to screen for complications.
Treatment
The problem of hernia gets resolved normally in most infants. In some cases, the doctor pushes the lump back in the abdomen. In rare cases, surgery becomes necessary.
Adults having umbilical hernia should undergo surgery by a hernia surgeon in Kolkata as it helps to prevent future complications. The surgery is not a complex process and it can either be open or laparoscopic.
- Open surgery: The surgeon makes a large incision in the area of the hernia, pushes the bulge down and stitches the muscles together. The use of mesh for strengthening the area is also common.
- Laparoscopic surgery: The other name of this surgery is keyhole surgery. In the area of the hernia, a laparoscopic hernia surgery specialist makes a few small incisions. He/she inserts the laparoscope, special surgical instruments and the other necessary materials through the incisions. The laparoscope is a thin tube with a light and video camera attached to it. The surgeon gets guidance from the images of the surgical site projected by the laparoscope to a monitor during the surgery. After pushing the bulge down, he/she makes the area strong by stitching the muscles together and fixes the mesh there. The surgeon then closes the incisions with a special glue or dissolvable stitches.