Hiatal hernia

Introduction: Hiatal hernia

Hiatal 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 ... more about Hiatal hernia.

Hiatal hernia: Hernia of the stomach through the diaphragm muscle. More detailed information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of Hiatal hernia is available below.

Symptoms of Hiatal hernia

• No symptoms
• Heartburn
• Symptoms after a meal
• Gas
• Abdominal discomfort

See full list of 8 symptoms of Hiatal hernia

Medical Textbooks Online about Hiatal hernia

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Hiatal hernia

• X-ray
• Gastroscopy

Read more about tests for Hiatal hernia

Wrongly Diagnosed with Hiatal hernia?

• Misdiagnosis of Hiatal hernia
• Underlying causes of Hiatal hernia (possibly wrongly diagnosed)

Causes of Hiatal hernia

• Obesity
• Pregnancy
• Tight clothing
• Physical exertion
• Weight lifting

See full list of 9 causes of Hiatal hernia

More information about causes of Hiatal hernia:

• Underlying causes of Hiatal hernia
• Hiatal hernia as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Hiatal hernia

Treatments for Hiatal hernia

• No treatment - many hiatal hernias require no treatment
• Treatments for heartburn
• Antacids
• Preventions for heartburn
• Lose weight

See full list of 6 treatments for Hiatal hernia

Videos for Hiatal hernia

Patient Surveys for Hiatal hernia

• Patient Profile Survey
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• Survey about the symptoms of your Hiatal hernia
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Prognosis for Hiatal hernia

Prognosis for Hiatal hernia: 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. (Source: excerpt from Hiatal Hernia: NIDDK)

More about prognosis of Hiatal hernia

Reseach about Hiatal hernia

Visit our research pages for current research about Hiatal hernia treatments.

Clinical Trials for Hiatal hernia

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Hiatal hernia include:

• Immunologic Factors in Reflux Esophagitis and Barretts Esophagus - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Esophageal Cancer Risk Registry - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Necessity of Esophageal Dissection During Laparoscopic Fundoplication - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Randomized, Prospective Controlled Trial of Paraesophageal Hernia Repair With Small Intestinal Submucosa (SIS) - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)

Read more about Clinical Trials for Hiatal hernia

Statistics for Hiatal hernia

• Medical statistics for Hiatal hernia
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Hiatal hernia
• Death and Mortality statistics for Hiatal hernia
• Society statistics for Hiatal hernia

Types of Hiatal hernia

• Sliding hiatus hernia
• Paraesophageal hiatus hernia

Read more about Types of Hiatal hernia

Medical Guidebooks and Ebooks for Hiatal hernia

• Icon Health Sourcebook for Hiatal hernia

See all guides and ebooks for Hiatal hernia

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Article Excerpts about Hiatal 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. (Source: excerpt from Hiatal Hernia: NIDDK)

Definitions of Hiatal hernia:

STOMACH herniation located at or near the diaphragmatic opening for the ESOPHAGUS, esophageal hiatus. When the ESOPHAGOGASTRIC JUNCTION is above the DIAPHRAGM, it is called a SLIDING HIATAL HERNIA. When the ESOPHAGOGASTRIC JUNCTION is below the DIAPHRAGM, it is called a PARAESOPHAGEAL HIATAL HERNIA. - (Source - Diseases Database)

Hernia resulting from the protrusion of part of the stomach through the diaphragm - (Source - WordNet 2.1)