Ingenious Hernia - Infant

[Phoenix]

Our daughter, Sophie, has been diagnosed as having an ingenious hernia, she is due to be operated on in a few weeks. The op is scheduled for 3:15pm on a Friday afternoon, we are wondering how long this procedure is, does anyone on the board have any idea? Once we get the confirmation letter from the hospital we can ring them for further information but for now we are just curious as to what is going to happen to our baby.

Ian

[dlegros]

Do you mean "Inguinal" Hernia?

This is where a loop of small bowel travels through the inguinal canal, more common in males as this is where the testes descend and the spermatic cord enters the abdomen, it can happen occasionally in girls - was Sophie premature by any chance?

In adults it is usually a relatively minor procedure, unfortunately I'n not too sure about this case as my paediatric surgical experience is limited. The adult procedure is normally carried out laparascopically (keyhole) where the hernia is reduced and a mesh is secured preventing the hernia from reoccurring.

Sorry it's not much, but hope it's of some help.

Dom

[Phoenix]

Originally Posted by dlegros

Do you mean "Inguinal" Hernia?

This is where a loop of small bowel travels through the inguinal canal, more common in males as this is where the testes descend and the spermatic cord enters the abdomen, it can happen occasionally in girls - was Sophie premature by any chance?
<snip>

That's the one Dom, she's really unlucky as apparently 98% of sufferers are boys, she was full term a 37.5 weeks so I guess it was bad luck.

Ian

[Ian@1904]

I can't offer info for your daughter, I had the op about five years ago-injury probably diving related
Your daughter will be a bit stiff for several days afterwards, so you will need to encourage her to walk small amounts (despite any discomfort) every day to aid recovery. This might be harder to achieve than you imagine. For a child if walking hurts, then don't walk.........
Naturally. huge amounts of parental TLC will assist.

Check what pain killers can be used for the recovery period. I suspect she will want these.

ATB
Ian

[frosty the snowman]

This is quite a common paeditric operation although more common in boys than girls. Some surgeons do it laparascopically and some open depending on their training and experience. It's a very straightforward, low risk proceedure but one which needs doing to avoid complications developing later such as bowel becoming trapped in the inguinal canal defect.

Your daughter will be fine. Don't forget to spoil her anyway!