What should I do if I have umbilical hernia in children?

What is an umbilical hernia? An umbilical hernia is a ball-like hernia that protrudes from the belly button. Umbilical hernia occurs not only in children but also in some adults. But in comparison, there are still more children. Moreover, once an umbilical hernia develops, it is difficult to heal naturally. When a child develops an umbilical hernia, mothers become panic-stricken and nervous, worrying about the risks of surgery. Now I will share the collected information with you.

1. Non-surgical treatment generally does not require any treatment. It can be tried for those who cry a lot and suffer from repeated incarceration.

(1) Compression method: Use an elastic band of appropriate length and width of 9 to 10 cm to sew it into a circle; let the baby lie flat and shrink the umbilical hernia; place the convex surface of a cotton ball (same size as the hernia) or half a ping-pong ball at the umbilical hernia and secure it with the elastic band.

(2) Tape method: Wrap a coin, button or piece of wood that is slightly larger than the navel ring with gauze, press it on the navel ring, and then secure it with wide tape. The tape is 5cm wide, and gauze can be padded inside the waist and back where the tape passes to avoid damaging the skin. During the operation, the hernia contents are first returned to the abdominal cavity to make the hernia sac empty to avoid bulging of the hernia contents and facilitate the closure of the umbilicus).

2. Surgical treatment: When infants and young children develop normally, umbilical hernia will disappear quickly, and only individual cases require surgical treatment, so one should not rush into surgery.

(1) Indications: Surgery may be considered in the following cases: ① The hernia is large, with an umbilical diameter of more than 2 cm; ② The hernia has not been cured after 1 year of conservative treatment, and the patient is over 2 years old; ③ The hernia is incarcerated, with adhesions between the internal organs and the hernia sac; ④ Umbilical pain, with suspected adhesions of the greater omentum.

(2) Surgical method: Make a semicircular skin incision around the bottom of the umbilical hernia, separate the subcutaneous tissue and free the hernia sac. After removing the hernia sac from under the umbilical skin, suture the peritoneum, and then suture the fascial edges of the rectus abdominis on both sides on the midline with thick silk thread, and suture the skin layer by layer. The wound was covered with sterile gauze and fixed with wide adhesive plaster to eliminate the tension of the abdominal wall.

The above are the methods to eliminate umbilical hernia. In fact, it is best to take your baby to the hospital for a full-body examination before the umbilical hernia develops. This will prevent the growth of the umbilical hernia and avoid the need for surgical treatment after the umbilical hernia develops. Of course, when treating, you should ask your doctor what treatment method is most suitable for your baby.