Umbilical Hernia - Springfield Gardens,NY

My 11 mo old had one when he was a baby and by the time he was like 4 or 5 months old, it had corrected itself. His Dr. said most of the time, they heal on their own.

Yes, my first child, who is now 11, had an umbilical hernia from birth. The doctor did wait, first to see if it would resolve on its own and then, advised that we should have corrective surgery, when he turned five.

He had the surgery without any complications. We have never looked back. He is very healthy and plays ice hockey.

Good luck to you. Keep an eye on it, see if it changes or if he seems in any pain. Remind the doctor to check if you notice they don't at your healthy baby check ups and go from there.

My daughter had it. It looked a little weird, but it did resolve on it's own. By the time she was 2, it looked totally normal.

I had one when I was an infant. The only time it ever effects me is when I am pregnant, and boy does it hurt when I get all stretched out (6 to 9 months, haha). Anyways, after this 3rd pregnancy I was supposed to have it corrected thru surgery but I have declined b/c it only ever effects during pregnancy.

So, since you have a boy I don't think I would worry about it. As other posters said it should correct itself.

Good luck

Hi - my first baby, my boy had one that appeared about 4 weeks after birth. His got a bit larger than an olive (a large olive!) and corrected itself within a few months. The ped told us when it first showed up that if it didn't correct itself by age 5, they would do surgery to correct it. They did tell me that as soon as his core got stronger, the abdominal muscles should close the hole that causes the hernia, and so we amped up the tummy time. I don't think you need to see a specialist at this point unless your ped recommends it.

My daughter had one and it never corrected itself so when she was 5 we had it surgically fixed. We did it over Christmas vacation and she was fine by the next day! I was WAYYY more nervous about it than she was!

My youngest had one as well and we were advised to wait and it had closed on its own by 8-9 months. It never caused any problems. And it didnt show up right when he was born which I thought was strange but if you do some research online you will see that they tend to show up after a month or two and the majority of them go away.

My nephew had the same thing - ended up having the surgery to correct it - he's doing fine now and is 2 yrs old - he was a little over a year old when he had it done. He unfortunately also had testicular hernias that had to be surgically taken care of as well.

Just keep an eye on it - and don't believe the old wive's tales about taping a penny to it... that does NOTHING to help it.. only looks ridiculous...

Both my boys had umbilical hernia's and both of them closed on their own by about 1 year of age. I know they can look bad but chances are you wont have to do anything but wait.

My cousin's daughter had one, it got pretty big and scary looking! It fixed itself when she was 3 years old.

My son had one too, it was huge!!! Everyone was bothered by it and couldn't get over how big it was! Heather gave you some great information.
My son's resolved itself around 4.5-5 months. I noticed it was getting a little smaller around 4 months old and then suddenly a month later it was gone.
It does get hard when they cry and even looks bigger. But, nothing to worry about. Check it like Heather mentioned and if you have any concerns make an appt. with the ped. Hopefully it will just clear up on it's own like most cases do!

I don't know about Umbilical Hernias.... but you should be referred to a Specialist, Ped. Specialist.

My daughter... at age 7, had what is called an "Inguinal Hernia" in her groin area. There are many types of hernias.
We saw a Pediatric Surgeon, referred to by our Pediatrician. A Specialist Surgeon who only specializes in Pediatric surgery... of hernias in children.

The Specialist said, she probably has had it since birth... but was only now presenting symptoms. Hernias, are a hole or weakness in the abdominal wall.....

My daughter, had the surgery, because per the Specialist... hernias can sometimes get 'strangulated.' (which means, that whatever organ is sticking out of that hole, ie: Hernia, that it can sometimes, without warning... get strangled.... and then it is an emergency situation because the organ can get gangrene etc.
IN my daughter's case, he said that what was bulging out of that hole, was probably an ovary or intestine. Which is common in THIS type of Hernia, in girls. In boys, it can be their organs/scrotum/testicle.

My daughter, was, getting pain/bulging in her groin. Thus we took her to the Doctor, She had surgery. 1 hour long, laproscopic surgery. It was FINE and very routine. Now, we do not have to 'worry' that her hernia might strangulate etc. and she does not have to limit her activities.

Sure, they say that Hernias can go away... but not always. And that is not necessarily true, that it just goes away in all cases. Some people have had their Hernias for YEARS.... and it causes them no problems... but occasional pain or the Hernia can bulge... which comes and goes per activity etc.

Again, I don't know about Umbilical Hernias... my daughter had a different type of Hernia.

What I was told... is that Hernias, do not self-resolve always. Perhaps the hole can close up... on its own. But it is not certain... nor can it be predicted. Because a Hernia, is a weakness/hole in the abdominal wall. BUT... if the "hole" does self-resolve and suddenly closes for some reason... again.... whatever organ is sticking out of that hole... can become... dangerously.... strangulated. And that is very dangerous.... and an emergency situation.

Our Specialist's son, had a Hernia.... it was unknown without outward symptoms... until one day, suddenly, he was called because his son was being flown to Emergency for a Strangulated Hernia... and our Specialist said, that at that juncture, the surgery has to be performed within 1 hour... or the organ can get gangrene and you lose the organ... or other complications/hemohrraging can occur etc.

In my daughter's case, we opted for the surgery. My daughter had it at 7 years old... even she said she was glad she had it done... because now she does not have to 'worry' about her bulge and the discomfort it caused.

If we did not have the surgery... we and my Daughter, would always have to worry, if it gets worse, whenever she had pain... whenever the bulge worsened or got bigger... or if it would strangulate. All of which, you cannot predict. ON top of that, she would have to continuously watch and limit her activities and any 'heavy' lifting or bending type movements... because it can make it worse or cause pain. Even when walking around for a long time, my Daughter would get a throbbing dull pain in her side. And then her Hernia would bulge more, for example.

all the best,
Susan