Current Treatment Of Abdominal Hernias

Hernias tend to enlarge in time and a quick medical consult could in some cases exempt the patients from surgery. But many persons with typical symptoms of hernia choose to wear a truss bandage instead of seeking professional help. The truss assembles a belt and supports the abdominal wall keeping the hernia from protruding. Hernias are caused by heavy lifting and high physical stress on the abdomen so all patients refusing surgery must consider avoiding strenuous activities.

In time, worse symptoms like nausea, vomiting and continuous pain appear and the hernial bag cannot be pushed back into the abdomen anymore. The patient is now forced to seek medical help and requires emergency operation.

The intra operator procedure in case of hernias is pushing the content back into the abdominal cavity, sewing the adjacent muscle and sometimes adding a nylon support material over the abdominal lining. Such supplementary materials are needed when the hernia is old, the abdominal wall is weakened or in case of elderly persons.

If patients with severe hernia symptoms do not seek immediate medical help, severe even life threatening complications may occur. In cases when the hernial content is an intestinal strain, the intervention becomes an emergency due to the existing danger. The trapped bowel fragment will cause an intestinal obstruction with potentially lethal damages to the entire body. A prompt surgery is most important as to prevent the stopping in the blood supply of the intestines. The involved bowel fragment could actually die.

In case of hiatus hernias, surgical operations are only performed in very severe situations. The common treatment is changing the eating, drinking and life schedule: patients should avoid lying down after meals, eat small and frequent meals, avoid alcohol and spicy foods, stop smoking and enhance many fibers in their diet.

Hiatus hernia’s symptoms can also be relieved by medication. Antacids neutralize the gastric acid and lower heartburns. Other assembling products decrease the acid production or some medicines even increase the efficiency of the esophageal muscles. When the stomach is rapidly emptied, the risk of heartburn is reduced.

Homeopathic medicine recommends products like Deglycyrrhizinated licorice for its action of reducing the effect of gastric acids.

Alternative medicine shows the benefits of visceral manipulation meaning restoring the stomach on its normal position.

About 85% of the hiatus hernias are successfully controlled with diet changes and medication. All abdominal hernias have a 10% rate of reoccurrence.

To avoid developing an abdominal hernia, do not lift heavy objects, keep your body weight under control and take moderate physical exercises.

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Hiatal Hernias and Acid Reflux

A hernia is caused when the muscle that holds an internal organ in place relaxes, allowing for movement of that organ, which can cause a multitude of problems, and in some cases, and inordinate amount of pain. The hiatal hernia, simply put, occurs when the stomach slides from the abdominal cavity partially into the chest cavity.

We know by now that what causes acid reflux is the failure of the valve, or the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) to close properly after food has been ingested, thereby allowing for the fluid to rise from the stomach into the esophagus. A hiatal hernia will weaken the LES, thereby making it more difficult for it to close properly, and thus allow for fluid to reflux out of the stomach.

Although it is clear that there is a direct correlation between acid reflux and hiatal hernias (most people discover that they have a hiatal hernia when they get examined by their doctor for acid reflux), they are not necessarily always seen in tandem with each other. You may have GERD without having a hiatal hernia and vice versa.

Common causes of a hiatal hernia are; pregnancy, obesity, tight clothing around the abdomen, constipation, chronic coughing, strenuous weightlifting, or abdominal injury. Many people who have a hiatal hernia do not know because unlike other forms of hernia, the hiatal hernia does not show itself physically, i.e. there are no bumps or protrusions recognizable on the outside of the body. Generally, hiatal hernias are more common amongst people over fifty; it is very rare for a young adult or child to have this condition.

In order to alleviate, or to reduce the intensity of these symptoms, you should do the following;

- Eat smaller meals more frequently
- Avoid acidic or spicy food
- Do not eat before going to bed
- Avoid heavy lifting
- Avoid bending after heavy meals (which you won’t be having anyways, because you’ll be grazing instead!)
- Lose weight
- Quit smoking.

There are a variety of medications that you can take as well including antacids, proton pump inhibitors, and but the easiest, most effective way to decrease your symptoms is to alter your diet to include foods that are easily digestible and avoid those that stimulate flare ups.

Surgery in the vast majority of cases is extremely rare as most people with hiatal hernias continue to live a normal life without discomfort or additional problems. With that said, however, you never want to ignore an issue that is going on in your body and will probably want to address it. If you are having trouble swallowing, a sore throat, wheezing or coughing, or difficulty breathing, then you most certainly will want to consult your doctor.

While most specialists recommend that you make the lifestyle changes noted above rather than resorting to pharmaceuticals as the first line of defense, you definitely should make an appointment to see your doctor if you have any persistent symptoms.

By Kathryn Whittaker. For information about using home remedy for acid reflux to reduce the effects of acid reflux syndrome please visit http://www.naturally-stop-acid-reflux.com

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Hernia - a Common Illness that Affects Millions

Millions of people discover that they have hernia each year only in the USA, because it's a common disease that can affect anyone at any age. Hernia is not a severe illness, but if it is not treated it can lead to serious complications and pain.

Hernia occurs when a part of an organ protrudes through the muscular fiber that has the role of keeping that organ in its place. This usually happens due to a weakness that appears in the muscles that are around the organ, and causes them to tear and let a part of it come out through the small opening that is created. That part of the organ that protudes will create a proeminent bulge that can usually be seen.

Hernia can appear in different parts of the body, but the most common place where it is encountered is the abdomen. An opening appears in the muscles of the abdominal wall and a part of the abdomen slips through it. The bulge that the abdomen creates can be seen, and it is more prominent when the patient coughs or sneezes and the abdominal pressure increases. This type of hernia is called hiatal hernia.

Other common types of hernia are:

-umbilical hernia, which is seen in young babies, and which appears when the belly button does not close properly after birth, and the abdominal contents slips through the opening -inguinal hernia, the result of the protrusion of the intestines out of the groin -femoral hernia, which occurs in the upper thigh -incisional hernia, that can appear after a surgery where the scar has not been closed properly.

The causes of hernia are weaknesses in the muscles. These can occur because of old age, or if the muscles are worn after many sporting activities. Those who practice a lot of sports, especially football and tennis often have a condition called sports hernia. Sports hernia is similar to hiatal hernia, but in sports hernia the lower abdomen protudes through the tear, and in hiatal hernia the upper abdomen.

Hernia symptoms are the appearance of the bulge in the affected place, and mild pain in that area. Many people can live with these symptoms so they choose not to treat their hernia, but it can get worse and lead to complications so the best thing to do is to consult your doctor, and if he advises you to treat it, then do it soon. Hernia can be treated by a simple surgery, so it's better to do it and get rid of the problem then suffer the pain for a long time.

If you want to find great information on different hernia subjects check out this link http://www.hernia-guide.com. You can find great content regarding Morgagni hernia, hernia surgery and many more.

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Hiatal Hernia: Most Common Form of Hernia

Many types of hernia are encountered at millions of people in the world, but the most common form, that affects the majority of the hernia patients is hiatal hernia. Other types are: inguinal hernia, umbilical hernia, and sports hernia. These types are less common then hiatal hernia.

Any type of hernia occurs when a part of an organ pokes through a tear that appears in the muscles near it. In the hiatal hernia's case, the upper side of the stomach gets in the chest through an opening in the diaphragm called the hiatus. The diaphragm is the muscle that separates the thoracic cavity from the abdomen, and the hiatus is an orifice in the diaphragm through which the esophagus passes in order to reach the stomach.

When hiatal hernia appears, the upper stomach and the end of the esophagus slip up through the hiatus because it has become weakened. This is called a sliding hiatal hernia. Most of the hiatal hernias are sliding hiatal hernias, but a few people suffer from a different form, called paraesophageal hernia, which is slightly more dangerous because the stomach can get strangled. Some call it strangled hiatal hernia for this reason. In paraesophageal hernia, the upper stomach and the esophagus don't slide through the hiatus together like in sliding hiatal hernia, but a little part of the stomach slips through it and can strangle the esophagus and shut its blood supply off.

The exact cause of hiatal hernia is not entirely known. It may happen after an accident where the chest or the abdomen of the patient is hit, or if the pressure inside the abdominal cavity is increased by repeated coughing or during pregnancy.

Hiatal hernia doesn't cause any symptoms or trouble in the body, so in most cases people have it and they don't even know about it, but they aren't exposed to any risks. The only time when treatment is required is when strangulation occurs. In this case the patient needs surgery to put the stomach back in its normal position. Hiatal hernia surgery can be done with the help of the laparoscope, an instrument used in many types of surgeries, that enables the doctor to operate without making a large incision in the chest, but through a very small one.

So, most of the people that have hiatal hernia can easily live with it without experiencing any problems, but if you know that you have it and you start to feel pain in the abdomen often or maybe even vomit, you may be in the danger of a strangulation, so consult your doctor for an accurate diagnosis.

If you want to find great information on different hernia subjects check out this link http://www.hernia-guide.com. You can find great content regarding sports hernia, umbilical hernia and many more.

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Hiatal Hernia Signs and Symptoms

When the upper part of the stomach pokes through the esophageal hiatus, because of a weakness in its muscles, hiatal hernia occurs. The esophageal hiatus is the opening in the diaphragm through which the esophagus enters the abdominal cavity.

At the esophagus' end there is the lower esophageal sphincter which has the role of a valve - it only allows food to travel one-way. There is also a second valve, which is the esophageal hiatus. The two valves are synchronized so that food from the stomach does not return back where it came from.

If the muscles get weak and the abdominal pressure increases, eventually the hiatus will stretch so much that the upper part of the stomach will pass through it thus causing the hiatal hernia.

In the early phases hiatal hernia does not present any symptoms so mostly it is discovered when you visit your doctor for a routine check. But as the illness advances symptoms are starting to appear. Among these there is heartburn, epigastric pain and rarely some infections.

Paraesophageal hernia may cause some incarcerations or more acute epigastric pain, because of a strangulation. This type of hernia is rare but it is dangerous, life threatening maybe. Sometimes complications like stomach strangulation appear but in most cases this does not happen.

The most common hiatal hernias - the sliding hernias. These are not that dangerous, one of their bad symptoms is reflux esophagitis, which was noticed in any people that suffer from hiatal hernia. Some of them were also affected by Barrett's esophagus because of the hernia. Barrett's esophagus may present dysphagia or reflux symptoms.

Unfortunately hiatal hernia has parsyntoms that are multifactorial, like esophagitis and peptic ulcer. In extreme cases a carchinoma appear in the hernia or chest infections.

Doctors advise people who are suffering from hiatal hernia to try to lose some weight and not to wear tight clothes.

If you want to find more information on hernia or hiatal hernia, and also about their symptoms and how to treat them, please follow these links.

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Hiatal Hernia - A More Dangerous and Hard to Detect Form of the Common Illness

Hiatal hernia is not as widespread as inguinal hernia which is the most encountered form but it is the second most common type of hernia so you should know what it is and how it manifests in order to know if you are suffering from it and what to do in this case.

Most hernias occur in the abdominal area. Hiatal hernia appears in the upper parts of the abdomen, at the diaphragm. A simple definition of hernia is that it is a disease that appears when a certain part of the body loses its resistance, because it gets old in most cases, and another part of the body that is in contact with the first one slips through a small hole that appears in the first part. Depending on the body parts involved in this hernia can be divided into more types.

Hiatal hernia involves the diaphragm, which is the first 'organ' from the situation above, the one that gets weakened, and the stomach, its upper side in most cases is the second one. The stomach is supposed to stay under the diaphragm (the muscular membrane that separates the abdomen from the lungs), but the diaphragm has a small hole in it through which the esophagus passes. The area around the hole weakens and a part of the stomach passes through it and slides inside the chest cavity. There are two forms of hiatal hernia, sliding hiatal hernia, when the stomach slides through the opening in the diaphragm between the stomach and esophagus as mentioned above, which is the most common form, and rolling hiatal hernia, less encountered, when the stomach slides along the esophagus not between it and the stomach.

Unlike other forms of hernia you can't feel the bulge that appears because the stomach slides inside the body, so in order to detect it you need to pay close attention if any of its symptoms show up, which is not that easy because in most cases it shows no easy-to-see symptoms! It usually causes heartburn, a warm feeling in the chest, because of the acid in the stomach that re-fluxes backwards in the esophagus. Most people feel symptoms after eating and lying down, they start feeling bad, especially if they eat hot spicy foods.

If you experience any of the mentioned above try paying a visit to your doctor and ask for a control. These symptoms also appear because of indigestion so don't get alarmed until you receive diagnostic. It's important to detect hiatal hernia early because if it's left untreated it may lead to severe complications that include heart-attack! So periodically visit your doc and pay attention to the symptoms to avoid complications, but don't panic as soon as you get a little heartburn because there's a long way from that to a heart-attack.

If you want to find great information on different hernia subjects check out this links. You can find great content regarding hiatal hernia, inguinal hernia and many more at http://www.hernia-guide.com

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Pain Management: Hiatal Hernia or Acid Reflux? - How to Cure Both

Acid Reflux - Hiatal Hernia

The Hiatal Hernia - Acid Reflux has been called the "great mimic", because it mimics many disorders. A person with this condition can get such severe pains in their chest that they think they are having a heart attack. They may think they have an over acid stomach because they will regurgitate stomach acid after they eat, or their stomach may hurt so badly they will think they have an ulcer. This is just a sampling of the symptoms that may occur from this disorder.

We always recommend that you see a medical professional to make sure there is nothing seriously wrong.

What is a Hiatal Hernia?

When you swallow, your food passes down a long tube known as the esophagus into the stomach. This tube must pass through a muscle known as the diaphragm, which is located near the bottom of your rib cage.

This opening in the diaphragm, which permits the esophagus to pass through, is regulated by a sphincter muscle (or "valve"), which relaxes and opens, when we swallow, to permit the food to pass through the diaphragm and into the stomach. This sphincter or valve closes to prevent stomach acid from coming back up into the throat.

A hiatal hernia-acid reflux occurs when the top of the stomach rolls or slides up into this opening and becomes stuck there.

Naturally, when part of the stomach is forced up into the diaphragm the sphincter muscle cannot close properly.

Thus, stomach acid may travel back up into the esophagus causing burning sensations (heartburn), esophageal spasms, inflammations and ulcers. (known as the Acid Reflux)

Your diaphragm is a muscle. The diaphragm has three large openings for passage of the aorta, esophagus, and vena cana. When you don't use your diaphragm to breathe, it weakens, and becomes flaccid.

This allows your stomach to be pushed through your diaphragm by gas pressure in your digestive tract in what is known as a hiatal hernia. The resulting pain is often confused for the onset of a heart attack.

A flaccid diaphragm most often results from chest breathing or shallow breathing.

The digestive tract has a series of one way valves to keep food material moving in the correct direction: the esophageal valve in the esophagus, a sphincter muscle valve between the esophagus and the stomach. The pyloric valve between the stomach and the small intestine, the ileocecal valve between the small intestine and the large intestine, and the Houston valve in the descending colon.

When one or more of these valves malfunctions, pressure from gas in the intestines may force food material to back up, pushing stomach acid into the esophagus.

The interesting discovery that we made with our studies in kinesiology was the relationship between these valves and the diaphragm muscle.

The valves generally do not malfunction as long as the diaphragm muscle remains strong and in balance. Once the diaphragm muscle weakens one or more of these valves may malfunction leading to a hiatal hernia and/or acid reflux.

Once the causes of mock heart attack (hiatal hernia) and acid reflux are properly identified, the preferred treatment becomes apparent. Both conditions can be corrected by doing diaphragmatic breathing exercises that both strengthen the diaphragm muscle and force the stomach down and out of the diaphragm.

Technique in Practicing Using The Diaphragm

1. Place your hand on your stomach When you take an in-breath your stomach goes out. 2. When you release your breath your stomach goes in.

This may be difficult to do at the beginning. To practice, you can lie on your back and put a book on your stomach. Concentrate with your in-breath pushing the book up and letting it fall when you release your breath.

This exercise can be done on the spot in whatever position you happen to be, standing, sitting, or lying down.

What I have discovered is that when I went to bed at night and did not feel very well, I would put my hand on my stomach and concentrate when taking an in breath to push my stomach out and feel it relax when I let my breath out. I would do this slowly.

The ultimate answer is learning to breathe with your diaphragm all the time. This involves regular practice of diaphragmatic breathing, and a continuing consciousness of how you are breathing.

As you continue this over a period of time, diaphragmatic breathing will become automatic.

A further benefit of diaphragmatic breathing is improved airflow into the lower parts of the lungs and better oxygenation

Once again we have found that helping your body to heal itself through muscle and energy balancing often provides satisfactory results in the long run.

Proper diaphragmatic breathing is important for our overall well-being. Proper diaphragmatic breathing assists us to properly oxygenate our body, particularly during physical exercise, reducing chronic fatigue due to shallow breathing.

It also helps us to maintain proper muscle tone in our diaphragm. This in turn helps us to hold our abdominal organs in the proper position and to reduce abdominal and chest pains. This is often helpful after eating to reduce gastronomic distress.

Another important feature of the Barhydt basic balances is that they always drive the body-mind toward equilibrium (or balance).

A person cannot harm himself or herself by doing these balancing exercises. Just do the exercise if you feel it may be helpful; it generally takes just a few seconds in any case. This makes basic balancing exercises appropriate for self-help.

Another benefit I have discovered when I learned to breathe using my diaphragm is that I can eat most anything like tomato-based foods (ketchup, spaghetti sauce), citrus fruits, mint, and even chocolate within moderation.

Visit http://www.Lovinglife.org for tips and tools for stress management and pain management. Visit my blog at http://www.lovinglifehealth.org Dr. Elizabeth Barhydt, A Muscle Stress Specialist on How To Relieve Stress, Pain and Learning Blocks Emotionally and Physically without Drugs.

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