BATTLING A BULGING HERNIA
DON'T IGNORE YOUR GROIN PAIN
Usually, the wall of the abdomen
Healthy Living | Summer Issue | 2018 43
is strong. The muscles keep
your intestine in place. But if
there’s a weak spot, the intestine
can push through and form a
hernia. A person may be born
with a weakness there, or the
weakness may develop over time
later in life.
“It’s like when you look at
an old tire on a car and you see
kind of a bulge on the sidewall
of the tire. That’s because there’s
a weakness in the wall of the tire.
And the air is pushing the wall
of the tire outward to create that
bulge,” says Dr. Dana K. Andersen,
an NIH hernia expert.
A hernia developing in
the abdomen is extremely
common. Babies, children,
and adults get them. Most
of the time, hernias are
found in men over 40. Can
lifting heavy objects give
you a hernia? Maybe if you
already have a weakness in
the wall of your abdomen.
“The majority—
three-quarters—of abdominal
wall hernias are
in the groin,” Andersen
says. The groin region is
the lower abdomen.
The first sign of a hernia
is a small bulge from the lower abdomen. You may
notice it only when you stand
up, cough, jump, or strain.
That’s because those activities
increase the pressure within
your abdomen. That increased
pressure can make a part of your
intestine pop out of an area of
weakness. When you lie down,
the bulge may go away.
If you think you may have
a hernia, ask your doctor. A
doctor can usually detect a
hernia during a physical exam.
Your doctor can rule out other
conditions that cause bulges or
lumps.
If the bulge is very soft,
your doctor may be able to
massage the intestine back into
the abdomen. A small, soft hernia
that does not cause pain
may not need treatment right