Hiatal Hernia: NIDDK

Article title: Hiatal Hernia: NIDDK

Main condition: Hiatal Hernia

Conditions: Hiatal Hernia, Hernia

When an organ pokes out past the muscle wall that is supposed to hold the organ in place, you have a hernia. A hiatal hernia occurs when the upper part of the stomach pushes through an opening in the diaphragm, the muscle that separates the abdomen from the chest. This opening is called the esophageal hiatus.

After you swallow food, it travels between your mouth and stomach through a muscular tube called the esophagus. The esophagus passes through the hiatus to enter the abdominal cavity. At the bottom of the esophagus is a muscle called the lower esophageal sphincter, which acts as a valve. The hiatus itself acts like a second valve. Normally the hiatus and the lower esophageal sphincter line up with each other to keep stomach contents from backing up into the esophagus (a condition called reflux). But the hiatus can stretch because of muscle weakness or too much abdominal pressure. When this occurs, the stomach can slip through the hiatus, causing a hiatal hernia.

A hiatal hernia can be caused by

• obesity
• pregnancy
• tight clothing
• sudden physical exertion, such as weight lifting
• straining, coughing
• abdominal injury

Although most hiatal hernias cause no symptoms, some people experience heartburn. Heartburn is caused by gastric reflux, in which the acid from the stomach refluxes up into the esophagus, causing an irritating and burning sensation. People with reflux symptoms have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and may need drug therapy. In certain people, reflux damages the lining of the esophagus, resulting in erosions. In extreme cases, the normal lining is replaced by abnormal cells, a condition called Barrett's esophagus.

You should not worry about having a hiatal hernia. Many people over the age of 50 have such a hernia, and it does not need treatment unless heartburn or GERD is present and causes significant discomfort, or unless the hernia is in danger of becoming twisted and cutting off the stomach's blood supply. Treatment may also be considered if you have complications such as severe GERD or esophagitis, which is an inflammation of the esophagus. In such cases, the doctor may recommend surgery to repair the hiatal hernia.

If a hiatal hernia is causing symptoms, the following tips may help:

• Eat smaller, more frequent meals.
• Avoid foods and drinks that may cause symptoms.
• Avoid lying down for 3 hours after eating.
• Raise the head of your bed 4 to 8 inches.
• Avoid wearing tight clothing around your waist.
• Take acid-reducing medications.
• Lose weight

More information is available from

International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (IFFGD)
P.O. Box 170864
Milwaukee, WI 53217-8076
Phone: 1-888-964-2001 or (414) 964-1799
Fax: (414) 964-7176
Email: iffgd@iffgd.org
Internet: http://www.iffgd.org/

Intestinal Disease Foundation, Inc.
1323 Forbes Avenue, Suite 200
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Phone: 1-877-587-9606 or (412) 261-5888
Fax: (412) 471-2722
Email: intdis@stargate.net

Pediatric/Adolescent Gastroesophageal Reflux Association, Inc. (PAGER)
P.O. Box 1153
Germantown, MD 20875-1153
Phone: (301) 601-9541
Email: gergroup@aol.com
Internet: http://www.reflux.org/

Additional Information on Hiatal Hernia

The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse collects resource information on digestive diseases for the Combined Health Information Database (CHID), which is produced by health-related agencies of the Federal Government. This database provides the titles, abstracts, and availability of health information and health education resources.

To give you the most up-to-date resources, information specialists at the clearinghouse created an automatic CHID search. To obtain this information, you may view the results of the automatic search on hiatal hernia.

Or if you wish to perform your own search of the database, you may access CHID Online and search CHID yourself.

National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse

2 Information Way
Bethesda, MD 20892-3570
Email: nddic@info.niddk.nih.gov

The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC) is a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). The NIDDK is part of the National Institutes of Health under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Established in 1980, the clearinghouse provides information about digestive diseases to people with digestive disorders and to their families, health care professionals, and the public. NDDIC answers inquiries, develops and distributes publications, and works closely with professional and patient organizations and Government agencies to coordinate resources about digestive diseases.

Publications produced by the clearinghouse are carefully reviewed by both NIDDK scientists and outside experts.

This e-text is not copyrighted. The clearinghouse encourages users of this quick fact to duplicate and distribute as many copies as desired.

NIH Publication No. 01-4801
April 2001

Posted: April 2001
 » Next page: High Blood Cholesterol: NWHIC

Rate This Website

What do you think about the features of this website? Take our user survey and have your say:

Website User Survey

Medical Tools & Articles:

Tools & Services:

• Bookmark this page
• Symptom Search
• Symptom Checker
• Medical Dictionary
• Give your feedback

Medical Articles:

• Disease & Treatments Search
• Misdiagnosis Center
• Full list of interesting articles

Forums & Message Boards

• Ask or answer a question at the Boards:
• I cannot get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for my condition?
• See all the Boards.

Enter your search terms Submit search form
Search The Web Search wrongdiagnosis.com

Common Health Mistakes

Symptom
Checker

Search Specialists by State and City