The term "umbilical hernia" refers to a pathological condition in which a protrusion of the internal organs occurs through an opening in the anterior abdominal wall. This can be: intestinal loops, stomach, omentum, liver, etc. According to statistics, women are exposed to umbilical hernia (photo below), but men are often diagnosed with pathology. Treatment of the disease involves surgery. In the presence of contraindications, conservative methods are used to stop the development of the pathological process.
The mechanism of development and features of the disease
In any person, the umbilical ring is the weakest and most vulnerable zone. Normally, it is small in size. Under the influence of various adverse factors, there is an even greater weakening of the umbilical ring, which can no longer hold the internal organs in a physiological position for them. As a result, they begin to move outward.
Umbilical hernia is of 2 types:
- Congenital. It is detected in young children shortly after birth. In most cases, the pathology disappears on its own without any intervention.
- Acquired. The most commonly diagnosed umbilical hernia in adults who have reached the age of 40 years. The disease develops in the process of life under the influence of various provoking factors.
If the contents move back into the abdominal cavity freely, it is customary to talk about a reducible hernia. Against the background of the development of the inflammatory process or with adhesions, infringement can occur. This form of the disease is the most dangerous. This is due to the fact that there is a compression of the organs located in the hernial sac, which poses a threat not only to health, but also to the patient's life.
Causes
The disease never appears on its own. In adults, umbilical hernia develops due to:
- Increased abdominal pressure.
- Hereditary predisposition.
- Decreased muscle tone in the abdominal wall.
If one of the next of kin suffered from an umbilical hernia, the risk of pathology increases significantly. In this case, the person is at risk. In the presence of a hereditary predisposition throughout life, it is necessary to avoid lifting heavy objects and control body weight.
An increase in intra-abdominal pressure may occur for the following reasons:
- persistent cough;
- chronic constipation;
- high intensity of physical activity.
In addition, in women, an umbilical hernia may appear during the delivery process. Also, the disease is often diagnosed for the first time during pregnancy. The risk of developing pathology is extremely high in women who have reached the age of 30 years. In this regard, during the bearing of a child, it is necessary to visit a surgeon for the timely detection of the disease.
One of the most important reasons for the development of umbilical hernia is the weakening of the muscles of the abdominal wall. It occurs under the influence of the following provoking factors:
- overweight;
- high intensity of physical activity or, on the contrary, their complete absence;
- various types of abdominal injuries;
- surgical intervention on the abdominal organs.
The most common pathology is diagnosed in women. In most cases, it develops against the background of pregnancy or with obesity.
Symptoms
At the initial stage of the development of the disease, the formation of a formation occurs, which begins to slightly protrude when the person is in an upright position. With any strain (coughing, sneezing), it slightly increases in size. If you take a horizontal position, the navel will stop rising relative to the abdomen. The contents of the hernial sac are soft to the touch and easy to set.
In the absence of treatment at the initial stage, the disease progresses. Education gradually increases in size, it is especially noticeable during stress.
At this stage, the following symptoms of an umbilical hernia appear:
- pain during touch;
- intestinal cramps;
- nausea turning into vomiting;
- disorders of the stool (frequent episodes of diarrhea or, on the contrary, constipation).
The development of the disease is accompanied by the formation of adhesions, due to which the contents are difficult or impossible to set into the abdominal cavity. The duration of this process is individual for each person. In some patients, the adhesion process can progress over several years, and therefore they do not notice a significant deterioration in well-being.
Sometimes the development of pathology stops. In some cases, on the contrary, it progresses very quickly. It is important to know that if you have the following symptoms of an umbilical hernia in adults, you must immediately call an ambulance team:
- an attack of acute pain that radiates to the lumbar region;
- darkening of the skin over the formation;
- local increase in body temperature;
- sensation of aches in the joints;
- there were signs of general intoxication of the body.
Similar symptoms indicate infringement.
Diagnostics
In both children and adults, a surgeon is involved in the treatment of umbilical hernia. If you experience the first alarming symptoms, you must contact him. In the process of admission, the doctor conducts an initial diagnosis of the disease, including:
- Interview. The specialist needs to provide information on the available symptoms, their severity and to clarify the time of their occurrence. In addition, it is first necessary to find out whether an umbilical hernia has ever been diagnosed in the immediate family.
- Inspection The surgeon assesses the condition of the skin, the size of the formation, its pain on palpation. In addition, he tries to put the hernial sac into the abdominal cavity in order to confirm or exclude the presence of adhesions.
Based on the results of the initial examination, the doctor draws up a referral for examination. The following methods are used to confirm the diagnosis:
- Gastroscopy.
- Roentgenography.
- Ultrasound of the umbilical ring.
- Herniography (radiography in combination with the introduction of a contrast medium into the abdominal cavity).
After obtaining the results of all studies, an individual treatment plan for umbilical hernia is drawn up.
Conservative Therapies
Currently, getting rid of pathology is possible only with the help of surgical intervention. However, surgical treatment of umbilical hernia is contraindicated for some patients.
Surgical intervention is not performed with:
- pregnancy (II and III trimester);
- serious diseases of the cardiovascular system;
- general serious condition;
- liver and kidney failure;
- exacerbation of chronic pathologies.
In addition, in a child with an umbilical hernia, surgery is not performed if he has not reached the age of 5 years. This is because in children the pathology can disappear on its own. To strengthen the muscles of the abdominal cavity, they can be assigned a complex of exercise therapy, massage and physiotherapy.
In adults, it is impossible to remove the umbilical hernia without surgery. In the presence of relative contraindications (before eliminating them), it is necessary to wear a special bandage and perform simple physical exercises. In addition, people with excess body weight need to adjust their diet to eliminate the provoking factor.
To strengthen the muscles of the abdominal wall, it is necessary to regularly perform the following exercise therapy complex:
- Breathe deeply without involving the stomach in the process.
- Slowly lean forward, trying to grab your shins with your hands.
- Squat.
- Lean to the sides, while spreading your arms.
- In a standing position, take the leg back, tilting the body forward. Hands need to rest on the back of the chair.
- Take a lying position and bend your knees. Turn them right and left one by one.
- In the same position, raise the bent legs and rotate them.
- In the supine position, raise the pelvis. The legs should be bent at the knees.
After eliminating the contraindications, the patient is drawn up in a hospital for surgical removal of an umbilical hernia.
Surgical treatment
The only effective method of getting rid of pathology is hernioplasty. This is a surgical procedure that can be performed in several ways. The choice of methodology is based on the results of diagnosis and individual characteristics of the patient’s health.
Until recently, the main method of treatment was intense hernioplasty - an operation whose umbilical hernia during which is removed as follows: the edges of the gates are pulled together, overlap and stitch together. Thus, only the patient’s own tissues are involved in the process. The main disadvantage of this method is that in every 7 patients there is a gap in the abdominal wall, since during the operation it is very stretched. For the same reason, a person feels pain during physical activity, and therefore the duration of the postoperative period increases. As a rule, it is 6 months.
Currently, the technique of unstressed hernioplasty is widely used. Its essence is as follows: instead of the patient’s own tissues, the surgeon uses mesh implants of artificial origin. Their main task is to strengthen the aponeurosis.
The advantages of this technique:
- lack of pronounced pain in the postoperative period;
- scar formation is faster;
- the risk of relapse is minimal - 1%;
- the level of quality of life after surgery is higher (compared with intense hernioplasty.
The positive aspects of the technique are mainly due to the advantages of modern implants:
- Due to the high strength index, they are able to withstand a load of up to 5 tons.
- After the operation around them, the process of formation of connective tissue is started. After some time, synthetic material cannot be distinguished from the body's own cells.
- Implants are tightly attached to the tissues, which eliminates the need to create additional fixation.
- Synthetic material is immune to the activity of pathogenic microorganisms.
The methods of the operation are constantly being improved. Currently, doctors increasingly prefer a minimally invasive method - laparoscopy. The method has the following advantages (compared to the above):
- during the operation, minimal tissue damage occurs;
- the shortest period of rehabilitation;
- lack of pronounced scars after surgery;
- the risk of relapse and the development of complications is minimal.
In addition, today in practice, combined methods of umbilical hernia removal are successfully used. This allows you to reduce the degree of load on the patient’s body, as well as reduce the duration of rehabilitation.
Postoperative period
The first few days, the patient should be in the hospital under the supervision of doctors. In this case, getting out of bed is allowed for 2 days. It is recommended that you walk leisurely outdoors daily, gradually increasing the duration of your walks.
After surgery, an umbilical hernia may reappear. In order to prevent relapse, you must wear a bandage daily (you need to wear it immediately after surgery). In addition, the use of this medical product facilitates and accelerates the healing of sutures.
The patient is discharged home after a few days in the absence of the following complications: relapse, severe pain, suppuration in the wound area, prolonged numbness of tissues, bleeding, high body temperature, severe swelling of the affected area. For another 2 weeks, a person should take antibiotics to prevent the development of various infectious processes. In addition, the doctor indicates the day when the patient needs to come to the medical facility to remove the stitches.
The bandage must be worn several months after surgery. Also, throughout the year it is forbidden to engage in sports, implying a high intensity of physical exertion, and to lift heavy objects.
Of particular importance is the adjustment of the diet. At first, you need to eat often, but in small portions (no more than 200 g). From the menu, you need to exclude products that contribute to the occurrence of bloating and constipation. This is due to the fact that such food increases the rate of intra-abdominal pressure.
On average, after removal of an umbilical hernia, a person returns to their usual regimen within 3 weeks. But in order to avoid the development of relapse, it is necessary to remember the restrictions for a few more months.
Folk methods
It is important to understand that the only way to get rid of an umbilical hernia is through surgery. Non-traditional methods are allowed to be used in adults, but they are aimed at eliminating unpleasant symptoms and slowing down the progression of the pathological process when surgical intervention is not possible. In order to avoid worsening the course of the disease, the use of folk remedies must be agreed with the attending physician.
The most effective recipes for improving well-being in the presence of umbilical hernia:
- Prepare 1 tbsp. l dried propolis. Pour it with 200 ml of medical alcohol or vodka. Insist for a week, while shaking the container you need daily. After the specified time, take 2 tbsp. l funds received and combine them with 2 tbsp. l melted butter. From this mixture, make a compress on the affected area. It is important that the product does not fall into the navel. After it is completely absorbed, it is necessary to wash the skin with cold water.
- Gently rub sea buckthorn oil twice a day into the affected area. The tool helps to stop the progression of the umbilical hernia.
- Grind clover. Grass in the amount of 1 tbsp. l pour 200 ml of boiling water. Insist for 1 hour. After this, strain the tool. Use it three times a day for 1/3 cup.
Alternative medicine recipes can also be used in the postoperative period to reduce the likelihood of relapse.
Prevention
It is necessary to carry out measures to prevent the occurrence of the disease to people with a genetic predisposition to the development of pathology, people at risk, and also to those who have already undergone surgery to remove an umbilical hernia.
For the prevention of ailment, the following rules must be observed:
- Lead a mobile lifestyle, but exclude high-intensity workouts. It is necessary to regularly perform exercises that strengthen the muscles of the abdominal wall.
- Adhere to the principles of healthy eating. The main triggering factors are constipation and overweight. If you change the diet, extra pounds will go away and stool will normalize.
In addition, women during pregnancy also need to pay attention to the prevention of pathology. When carrying a child, it is necessary to wear special underwear or bandage. Due to this, the peritoneal tissue does not experience excessive load.
Finally
Umbilical hernia is a pathological process characterized by displacement and protrusion of the abdominal organs. According to statistics, women are most susceptible to the disease, but it is also diagnosed in men and young children. Currently, there is no conservative method to combat umbilical hernia. It is possible to get rid of pathology only surgically. If there are contraindications to surgical intervention, the patient is prescribed procedures that stop the development of the disease: physiotherapy and physiotherapy. In addition, you must regularly wear a bandage and adhere to certain principles in nutrition.