Abdominal wall hernia includes all cases in which an intestinal viscera, or part of it, leaks from its natural location by taking advantage of weakness in the muscles and fascia of the abdomen or a natural “door” such as the umbilicus or other ducts.
This occurs as a result of various causes, most frequently congenital, present from birth, or due to strain or progressive aging and relaxation of the muscles that support the abdomen. They manifest as a soft bulge. Generally we speak of abdominal hernia, although more precisely we indicate the area where the herniation occurs and thus we speak of umbilical hernia, epigastric hernia, inguinal hernia, crural hernia, obturator hernia.
