Monday, November 3, 2008

Umbilical Hernia

Brandon has had an umbilical hernia since before he was discharged from the hospital. It looks like a large raised belly button. An umbilical hernia occurs when part of the intestine protrudes through a weak spot in the abdominal muscles. During pregnancy, the umbilical cord passes through a small opening in the baby's abdominal muscles. The opening normally closes before birth. If the muscles don't meet together in the midline completely, this weakness in the abdominal wall may cause an umbilical hernia at birth or later in life. It is very common in preemies and the majority of the time they close on their own. Sometimes not until the baby is 4 or 5 years old. I noticed that it has been looking larger so I brought Brandon to the pediatrician today to have it looked at. She thinks it is probably ok but she wants him to get an abdominal ultrasound to make sure it is not incarcerated. If it is incarcerated )protruding abdominal tissue becomes trapped) he will need surgery to close it. His ultrasound is scheduled for next Tuesday.

Brandon was weighed when he was the pediatrician. He weighs 9 pounds! The doctor that we saw couldn't believe he was a 26 weeker since he is doing so well. He is now out of his newborn clothes and in 0-3 month clothes.

1 comment:

Quince Family said...

Hey Karen!
Amare had an umbilical hernia too! The doc said it was very common for NICU babies to have them (especially if they run their IV's through their umbilical cord). While it looked sort of wierd, it went away on it's own when he was four months old. Hopefully the U/S goes well and you can just wait for it to go away. He's still looking like a handsome little guy! :) Missy