Umbilical hernias

Amanda - posted on 01/21/2009

My 3 monthold aslo has a umbilical hernia.Hers seems to be going away, but is monitered by her doctor t drtermine if there have been any changes.The doctor told me that if it doesnt go away by age 4 then she would have to have surgery.

Bethany - posted on 01/21/2009

You've already got alot of answers on this, but i figured I'd add mine too.  My son had an umbilical hernia appear when he was about a month old, and it really freaked me out, it was about as round as a quarter and stuck out about a half inch.  Usually, there is nothing to be afraid of.  I asked just about everyone that I could about it, and the answer that I got was that it's fine as long as it's "reduceable" meaning that you can push it back in without it being hard and alot of resistance.  I was told that it'll be ok unless it is still there when he is around 5, then they will reconsider surgery.  Surgery before that is usually for the mom's peace of mind, and not for the baby's comfort. 

My son is now 4 months old and it is mostly gone. 

Hope that helps.

User - posted on 01/21/2009

My son had one when he was born they told me the same thing and said it would just go away on its own and it doesn't bother him. He ended up getting a second one in his sac when he was about 20 months and had to get them both removed at 22 months old day surgery. Hasn't had any problems since then, hope everything works out for you.

Shannon - posted on 01/21/2009

Hi Maryanne. My son (now 5) had one at birth as well. Usually they go away on their own by the time they are 1 year old. But at 15 months my son still had his so he had surgery. It was done at a surgery center but he did go under for it and has a tiny scar. We took him home after he was awake and the next day he was almost as active as he usually was. It healed great and haven't had an issue since. Hope that helps!

Alicia - posted on 01/21/2009

Hello Maryanne,

...and he is a cutie!

My son had a fairly large umbilical hernia. We were told that we could wait until he was school aged before we needed to decide whether surgical intervention was necessary. So we waited until right before his classes began. He never really complained about much pain except for hard bowel movements. This was the doctor's only concern and after he turned 5 we opted for the surgery. He did very well, had his surgery on a Thursday, and was able to go back to school Monday without complication. Ultimately, the decision is yours and your son's. If he is not complaining of pain and there is not an absolute risk of complication surgery may not be necessary.

Best wishes! 

Tasha - posted on 01/21/2009

My son had an umbilical hernia when he was born, and it lasted about 6 months. My Dr was not concerned at all because she said she could feel the hole and it was very small. She told me it is actually pretty common, especially in boys. She said they prefer to try to let it heal on its own and would not even think of surgery until he was possibly 2 years old. However, it all of a sudden started getting smaller and in just a couple of days it was gone!

Nicole - posted on 01/21/2009

My daughter had umbilical hernia and it last for abou 4 months. Lookng at her navel area you can never tell it was there.

Iris - posted on 01/21/2009

Hi Maryanne,
I have lived my 30 yrs. with and umbilical hernia and never had an operation. It was small and I didn't even notice it until I got my 4 pack. No issues with mine. As long as there are no problems that create a larger tear, like massive weight gain or other serious injury that tears the muscle further, he should be fine. Check with your doctor. Best!

Jenelle - posted on 01/21/2009

My daughter has a pretty good sized umbilical hernia, about the size of a walnut. Although unconcerned, I did some research myself and found it to not be an uncommon or highly threatening condition. At her 2 month check-up, our doctor seemed concerned and immediately referred us to a surgeon. I met with her and, like me, the surgeon didn't see any reason to do anything about it. She actually said the risks of anesthesia outweighed the risks of performing surgery at her age, which was my opinion as well. (We have since changed doctors as our original had drastically different views on her care as we did). The only thing I have learned to be a complication with umbilical hernias is that if it is small enough to close on it's own that there is a very small percentage of cases in which part of the intestine is still outside of the abdomen when the muscles close together. If this rarity were to occur, it wouldn't happen immediately; there are many signs you would notice before there were to be an emergency. Redness, tenderness, discomfort, baby not wanting to nurse as much, etc. An umbilical hernia does not cause the child pain as it is. Our first doctor was recommending the procedure for cosmetic and convenience reasons which just doesn't jive with our lifestyle; we choose to use the wait-and-see approach before doing anything drastic like surgery. The hernia will not affect the way you need to hold or handle your baby and should not be a concern during tummy time. There are many layers to the abdomen besides just muscles which protect our organs; also there is fluid and fatty tissue in the area of the hernia for protection. It will not just burst open even though it sometimes looks that way when the baby cries or strains. Our new doctor has a child who had an umbilical hernia, so I really trust her advice. She has told me to pretty much pretend like it is not there and not to worry about it because there is nothing wrong. She examines it at our well baby appointments and would let me know if I need to keep an eye on it. She suggested surgery between ages 2 and 4 if we chose that route as that would give it time to heal itself without the risks involved in surgery and anesthesia. This age guideline also is for the child's benefit because they are more likely to not remember the procedure or the hospital stay than if he or she were older. She also said that we didn't have to do anything about it all, because if it hadn't closed or begun to close on it's own by that time then it probably never would which means the intestine would not be pinched, which is the whole point of doing the surgery besides for cosmetic reasons. So in my opinion, I would not spend time worrying about deciding what to do with the hernia while your baby is so young; just enjoy your baby and continue well child appointments where your doctor can keep track of its progress and let you know if there is ever a concern. And don't forget your own intuition, your mama instincts, that will never match any doctor's; these will tell you whether you want your doc to give the hernia more attention if you sense something is up, or to have him or her back off if you feel there is no immediate heath danger. Also, don't feel as if it had something to do with you as these are generally genetic. My daughter's father had one as a baby; it was left alone and closed on it's own and he has no health issues in regards to the hernia.

Paulette - posted on 01/21/2009

Hi Maryanne, I don't have a child with an umbilical hernia but I did have one and had surgery. I was told by the doctor that these hernias were from the intestinal wall having a tear or hole where the intestines are trying to push up through. If the doctor told you to massage and push gently on the hernia that is good. But what you are working on doing is pushing the portion of the intestine back through a hole in the lining. Hoping then the hole or tear can heal/close. For me the doctor put in a mesh patch and was surprised that the hole was bigger than on exam. My hope for you and your baby is that it will work its way back in so you do not have to have surgery. But if it does not work it will help him emencely during tummy time and crawling and so on to be more comfortable. Have a nice day!

Sian - posted on 01/20/2009

my son did, i used to gentley push the belly button in especially wen he was crying, he was premature and is now 10 with a little outie but fine! its not very prominant atall, i cant really remember back that far as to wen it went away but i dont think it was long, probably a couple of mnths.

Dalane - posted on 01/20/2009

Hi Maryanne

Neither of my daughters have but I myself had an umbilical hernia when I was 6 weeks old. I had to have surgery and now have a very cool dagger-shaped scar above my navel :) I know some go down on their own... each case is individual.