Hiatal Hernia Causes Being born with a larger hiatal opening than usual. Injury to the area. Changes in your diaphragm as you age. A rise in pressure in your belly, as from pregnancy, obesity, coughing, lifting something heavy, or straining on the toilet.
Q. Is a moderate hiatal hernia serious?
In most cases, a hiatal hernia won’t lead to other health problems. In some cases, it can cause other problems such as: Severe GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) Lung problems or pneumonia because stomach contents have moved up into your esophagus and into one or both lungs.
Table of Contents
- Q. Is a moderate hiatal hernia serious?
- Q. What’s a moderate hiatal hernia?
- Q. Does a medium hiatal hernia need surgery?
- Q. Can a moderate hiatal hernia cause shortness of breath?
- Q. Can you see a hiatal hernia on a CT scan?
- Q. How bad does a hiatal hernia have to be for surgery?
- Q. Can a hiatal hernia really kill you?
- Q. What increases my risk for a hiatal hernia?
- Q. What size hiatal hernia needs surgery?
- Q. What are the treatments for hiatal hernia?
Q. What’s a moderate hiatal hernia?
A hiatal hernia occurs when the upper part of your stomach bulges through your diaphragm into your chest cavity. A hiatal hernia occurs when the upper part of your stomach bulges through the large muscle separating your abdomen and chest (diaphragm).
Q. Does a medium hiatal hernia need surgery?
Most people with a hiatal hernia don’t experience any signs or symptoms and won’t need treatment. If you experience signs and symptoms, such as recurrent heartburn and acid reflux, you may need medication or surgery.
Q. Can a moderate hiatal hernia cause shortness of breath?
Epigastric pain—this is pain in the middle, upper abdomen. Dysphagia—difficulty swallowing. Shortness of breath—in some very large paraesophageal hernias, the stomach may push on the diaphragm or compress the lungs contributing to a sensation of shortness of breath.
Q. Can you see a hiatal hernia on a CT scan?
CT scanning is not routinely used in the diagnosis of a hiatal hernia, but it may be a useful for specific indications. Hiatal hernias often are seen incidentally on CT scans obtained for other indications (see the image below).
Q. How bad does a hiatal hernia have to be for surgery?
However, surgery may be recommended if: symptoms are severe and interfere with quality of life. symptoms do not respond to other treatments. the hernia is at risk of becoming strangulated, which is where the blood supply to the herniated tissue is cut off — a situation that can be fatal.
Q. Can a hiatal hernia really kill you?
Yes, but it’s rare. Hiatal hernia is more likely the older you get ; can exist without symptoms.Hiatal hernia can have symptoms associated with reflux –hearburn, chest pain, difficulty swallowing .Long history of reflux can result in changes in the esophagus leading to bleeding, scarring, or cancer .Rarely,…
Q. What increases my risk for a hiatal hernia?
Aging: Overall, the chances of having a hiatal hernia increase as you get older. Trauma: Traumatic injury can contribute to pressure on the diaphragm, causing expansion of the opening in muscle. Surgery: Abdominal surgery may increase your chances of developing a hiatal hernia. Congenital: Babies and young children can have a hiatal hernia from birth.
Q. What size hiatal hernia needs surgery?
Those that are refractory to medications do require surgery, most commonly a. A 48Fr bougie (or similar size relative to the patient’s size) is passed into the stomach. It is believed that the size of the hiatal hernia increases as patients age..
Q. What are the treatments for hiatal hernia?
Medications are also used in the treatment of hiatal hernia. They may include the use of over-the-counter antacids, such as Tums, Tagamet or Pepcid. For more serious cases of hiatal hernia accompanied by GERD, drug treatment may include a proton pump inhibitor, which decreases the production of stomach acid.
