22 Month Old Son Needing Corrective Hydrocele Surgery

I agree with what some of the other posts said and understand your reaction - it's a knee jerk reaction we all have to hearing something we don't want to hear - we look for 'a way out".

The increase in hearing about these surgeries does NOT necessarily mean they didn't have the hernias back then, it could mean that but it could mean that they didn't detect them (until later in life) or didn't correct them. Hard to know with some real research and a review of the relevant literature. From the little I know about hernias - they are something that causes acute pain when they occur rather than killing anyone so that's probably not the outcome to measure for.

Anyway, if you are uncomfortable you should inform yourself as much as possible about the condition (you can't trust the info you find on the web - seek advice from several professionals and maybe the NIH or Mayo clinic sites - trusted sites) and b) find a doctor you trust so you don't have to worry about their motives in advising you a course of action.

I agree too that the world is a dramatically different place then it was just 30 years ago let alone 70 with respect to pollutants yes but also the ability to keep babies born prematurely make it. Those few weeks really have an impact on babies ability to finish developing do lots of medical consequences are felt.

Whatever you decide, best to you and your little one. I also would be very upset at the thought of my little one undergoing surgery but if necessary would have it.

I really share your conflicted feelings about this. I agree that the medical system is pretty corrupt in many ways, and they do a lot of procedures because they are quick and pay fast. They also dispense a huge number of drugs that are pushed on them by the pharmaceutical industry, and they have little training (if any) in things like alternative methods, nutrition, etc. (A parallel is banks offering you overdraft protection and charging $35 per occurrence - they absolutely SURVIVE on this money, which is way beyond what it 'costs' them to provide the service. And don't get me started on credit card companies charging 20% interest and so on!).

And yes, there are more instances of many conditions than there used to be. A lot of that is better diagnostic techniques, and a willingness for people to actually talk about things that occur in sensitive areas like the scrotum. However, a lot of it is caused by increased incidents for several reasons - we have, overall, much poorer nutrition than we used to, and there are more environmental pollutants that affect us and our unborn babies. And of course, there is a higher survival rate for premature children, which is good but also which results in more conditions to be dealt with or corrected.

I think, if you are going to do the surgery, you are better off at a place that does a lot of them. Even a guy like Dr. Oz, who I think is very balanced in his approach (not that I think he's THE expert on everything, like some people do), will tell you to go to a place that does a lot of what you are having done. Remember that UMass, like Children's, gets all the tough cases and it becomes a mecca for all the routine ones as well. So the high numbers alone don't tell the whole story. All things being equal, I would feel more comfortable being in a place with a lot of experience and also all the emergency personnel and experts should anything go wrong.

I also work with people who use nutritional solutions to many medical issues (although not to the total exclusion of surgery or meds, just to reduce the incidence and also the length of recovery time). One woman I know was on 30 prescriptions and is now down to 4, working on getting rid of those. I'm going to research inguinal hernias through my work to see if I can find anyone with this issue.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Hi A.,

Depending on how long your son has had the hernia, it might be possible to treat it without surgery. The hernia is caused by weak abdominal muscles not being able to hold in his intestine. A trick I learnt from my pediatrician which worked wonders for my daughters umbilical hernia was to push the hernia in and tape a coin over the top so the tissue is forced into place and can't pop out again. We did this for 2-3 weeks and her abdominal muscles became strong enough to hold the umbilicus in without any need for surgery. For your son I would suggest something similar - maybe a couple of quarters or a piece of thick cardboard cut to size. Cover whatever in gauze (so it doesn't irritate), and use surgical tape to tape it on. The card would probably work best. The internal and transverse obliques are the two that need strengthening and they are fairly thin - you can help your son make them stronger by getting him to get on all fours and then straight his arms and legs so you're in that triangle shape - have a game where you see what you can pass underneath him.

Hope this helps and wish you luck

Hi A.,

My brother-in-law had this and it was corrected in the 70s. Nearly 30 years later, his son had the same condition and it was corrected surgically as well. I'd imagine that if it were not corrected, that it could affect his fertility later in life as well as the possibility of a painful scrotal hernia.

It seems to me to be one of those increased surgeries that is overall beneficial. Of course I say that having not faced it with my own son (so far, so good).

I wish you and your son luck and good health.

Hernias are very common and always have been. It is a weakness in the muscle that enables the intestines to poke through. My younger brother (now in his 40s) had to have two repaired when he was a little boy. I remember they rushed him off to the hospital as the hernia had strangulated. He was in excruciating pain. The fact that Umass does this surgery 12-15 times a week tells you just how common they are.

At age 36 I had emergency surgery for an incarcerated umbilical hernia. I lifted my baby out of the tub and part of my intestine popped out of a small tear in the stomach wall. It was excruciatingly painful and dangerous, so surgery was required. When I recovered, I asked my surgeon how common hernias were - he laughed and said hernia surgeries were the bread and butter that kept the hospital standing!

No I don't feel it to be scandalous. Boys who are premmies are prone to this. My 1st son was born at 31 weeks and he definately had Bilat
Inguinal hernias. You could hear and feel his intestines in his scrotum. He was so miserable just grunted and rooted in his baby bed and he was only 2 months old adjusted age. If you consider the fact that now some babies that are born at 19-20 weeks gestation and maybe even earlier can be kept alive and nourished. Many years ago they didn't have technology to do what they can do today. I'm not saying all modern medical technology is wonderful but it has come a long way. You just have to hope you have a doctor with a big heart and not worried if his wallet is big.