Lump in the abdomen

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Infant abdominal hernia (gastroschisis)

Abdominal hernia; Hernia - abdominal; Abdominal wall defects; Lump in the abdominal wall; Abdominal wall mass

Seek appropriate care for chronic cough or constipation if you have a hernia. Straining associated with these conditions causes the intestines to bulge further into the hernia.

Call your doctor if you have a lump in your abdomen that becomes larger, discolored, or painful.

If you have a hernia, call your doctor if you have:

• Fever
• Vomiting
• Abnormal appearance of the hernia
• Pain or tenderness around the hernia

A strangulated hernia (when the blood supply to the organs that protrude through the hernia is lost) is very rare, but it is a medical emergency.

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The doctor will examine you and ask questions about your medical history and symptoms, such as:

• Where is the lump located?
• When did you first notice the lump in your abdomen?
• Is it always there or does it come and go?
• How large is the abdominal lump? Try to measure the diameter (distance across) or compare it to another object (the size of a baseball, for example)
• Does anything make the lump bigger or smaller?
• What other symptoms do you have?

During the physical examination, you may be asked to cough or strain.

Surgery may be needed to correct incisional hernias or umbilical hernias that do not go away by the time the child approaches school age. Emergency surgery is needed in the case of a strangulated hernia.

Review Date: 08/21/2009
Reviewed By: James Lee, MD, Department of Surgery, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).