What are the symptoms of hernia in boys?

Many mothers are always worried about their children's health before giving birth. In fact, newborns are generally very healthy. However, there is a common disease among babies called hernia, which is mainly a protruding abdomen of the newborn baby. Many people are confused about what exactly is this hernia? What are the symptoms of hernia in male babies? The editor will provide some simple analysis to help mothers and fathers prepare for welcoming their children.

Next, we will introduce the specific manifestations of infant hernia symptoms.

"Hernia" is a common disease in pediatric surgery. Most cases are discovered at 2-3 months of age, but some are not discovered until 1-2 years of age. The incidence rate is high in premature infants and low-birth-weight infants. Medically speaking, what people usually call pediatric hernia mainly refers to congenital indirect hernia. It usually occurs when there is increased intra-abdominal pressure.

A walnut-sized swelling forms on the navel of a child and protrudes outward. It is spherical or hemispherical in appearance, has a small scar on the top, and feels soft. This is one of the symptoms of infant hernia. The tumor is characterized by its reversibility. During the day, the swelling will grow larger when the child runs and jumps, but there is no obvious pain. At night, the tumor will shrink or retract into the abdominal cavity, accompanied by bowel sounds. After the tumor shrinks or retracts, the loose skin wrinkles left in the area are also symptoms of infantile hernia.

However, after crying, exercising, coughing, defecating, etc., the swelling becomes particularly large and feels firm to the touch, and the abdominal pain worsens and vomiting, abdominal distension, and cessation of defecation occur, which are all symptoms of infant hernia. When the baby cries, abdominal pressure increases, the change is more obvious, and the skin becomes thinner. Because the baby's abdominal wall and hernia ring are relatively soft, incarceration is very rare.

What causes hernia?

Due to developmental defects of the umbilicus, the umbilical ring fails to close, or the adhesion and healing of the umbilical cord root tissue and the umbilical ring are poor after the umbilical cord falls off. When the intra-abdominal pressure increases, the omentum or intestinal tract protrudes through the weak part of the umbilicus to form an umbilical hernia.

What people usually call pediatric hernia, from a medical point of view, mainly refers to congenital indirect hernia. This is because the boy's testicles descend to the scrotum through the inguinal canal before birth, and the peritoneum moves downward to form the processus vaginalis. If the processus vaginalis has not closed after the baby is born, it will become a larger cavity. The contents of the abdominal cavity will protrude from here to the body surface, forming an indirect hernia. Because the right testicle descends slightly later than the left, the processus vaginalis closes later, so there are more right-side inguinal hernias. Of course, girls can also develop indirect hernias due to weak abdominal walls, but the incidence rate is very low.

The symptoms of hernia in male babies are listed above. The editor has analyzed the most common and typical symptoms for you. However, you should still conduct a careful examination after the baby is born, because the child may have other complications in addition to hernia, which will lead to developmental delay and should be treated quickly.