Pregnancy is a rather difficult period for every woman when new diseases appear and “go out” forgotten diseases. This is explained by the fact that the body of a woman bearing a child is rebuilt, the load on internal organs increases. Some pregnant women may develop umbilical hernia, which should be treated without fail. Fortunately, this condition is not dangerous for the child and mother.
Alas, the appearance of an umbilical hernia is quite common during the bearing of a child. The walls of the abdominal cavity and the umbilical ring in a woman gradually stretch, which causes muscle weakness.
You can prevent this condition at the stage of pregnancy planning: lead a healthy and active lifestyle, pump the press, perform simple physical exercises and strengthen your abdominal muscles in every way. However, these same measures and after labor will help to recover much faster. Let's try to understand why the navel hurts during pregnancy and is it possible to stop the process of becoming a hernia?
Reasons for the appearance
Umbilical hernia in pregnant women occurs due to excessive weakening of the muscles of the ring, which is characterized by protrusion of the internal organs. In particular, this pathology occurs in the last trimester of pregnancy, with polyhydramnios, a large child or a multiple pregnancy. A predisposing factor in the onset of this condition is the age of 35 years.
Another reason is a strong weight gain during pregnancy. The woman’s task is to control her weight in order to avoid complications.
In some women, a hernia of this type may appear after pregnancy, but do not worry. With regular observations, it will not be dangerous! But an umbilical hernia in a neglected state can lead to the development of certain characteristic complications requiring medical supervision.
Key factors
So, the following main factors are noted why the navel hurts during pregnancy and a hernia appears:
- Weakening of the abdominal wall.
- Repeated pregnancies.
- Overweight pregnant woman.
- Hereditary predisposition.
- The presence of ascites.
- Polyhydramnios.
- Multiple pregnancy.
- Increased abdominal pressure.
- Increased load on the abdominal cavity and its muscles.
- Big fruit.
- Stretching of the umbilical ring as a result of increased pressure, because an ever-growing uterus will press and support the organs.
- The syndrome was established before pregnancy.
- Weak press.
- Age from 35 years.
- Hypertrophy of the fetus.
- The development of the defect from childhood.
Relapse
Umbilical hernia during pregnancy can occur during repeated births as a result of a complicated first pregnancy.
If during pregnancy there is a suspicion of the first signs of a developing umbilical hernia, the doctor will recommend wearing a support bandage. He will also protect the abs and abdominal area from overvoltage and prevent the development of this disease.
Bandage
There are several methods of treating umbilical hernia in a pregnant woman, and their choice depends on the danger of this disease for both the fetus and the woman in labor. With a non-hazardous form, complex treatment is not required.
Usually, therapy for umbilical hernia in pregnant women is limited to wearing a bandage from about the second trimester of pregnancy. It reduces the load on the stomach, evenly distributing it across the lower back and sides, preventing the prolapse of the internal organs through the gates of the hernia, as well as their possible pinching.
It is important to choose the right brace, following the advice of a doctor, as with improper fixation the pain can only intensify. It is also worth limiting weight lifting and physical activity.
Gymnastics and massage
Quite effective methods of treating the disease with a big belly in a pregnant woman are called gymnastics and massage. With light, smooth movements, you need to massage the stomach near the navel in a clockwise direction, slightly pinching the place where the hernia formed. Any strong effect on the navel and the area around it during pregnancy is strictly contraindicated! You can download the press only by agreement with the doctor, so as not to harm the child and not contribute to the deterioration of this condition.
Surgical intervention
Given the patient’s complaints, the results of tests, examinations, and additional research methods, the doctor makes a decision on which the time and importance of the surgical intervention will depend. Usually, an umbilical hernia is operated on about six months after giving birth, when the wall of the abdominal cavity is already restored and the general condition of the woman improves.
The treatment of umbilical hernia in pregnant women by performing surgical intervention is extremely rare, only if there is a risk of infringement of certain internal organs. Surgical procedures performed in the navel during pregnancy are relatively easy, so they are performed in a hospital.
But pregnant women try not to do surgical intervention until the delivery and the end of breastfeeding, since the used anesthesia can penetrate through the blood directly into milk, negatively affecting the development of the child. In the absence of threat, the operation is delayed. In most cases, delivery with an umbilical hernia goes well, but it is still worth following the doctor’s recommendations.
How is the bearing?
Depending on the size and type of protrusion, a method of carrying a child is selected, and in the third trimester, tactics are developed for carrying out labor:
- If the hernial sac does not contain any elements of the internal organs, observation should be carried out by the obstetrician, regularly wear a special support bandage from the hernia. A woman can give birth naturally.
- With a small hernial sac with the contents, special intervention is not required, but it is necessary to wear a bandage. The process of labor must first be discussed with a doctor.
- If the protrusion is large and contains content, it is not always necessary to perform an instant removal. If the loop goes outside, surgery is carried out in a clearly defined, planned order, taking into account a safe time. In this case, giving birth on one's own can be unsafe.
- The intestinal loop, which will have an infringement, requires emergency surgery, and a woman with this pathology is allowed to give birth exclusively by performing a cesarean section.
The risks
It is worth noting that pinching the umbilical hernia in pregnant women always carries a certain threat, since with untimely and incorrect treatment peritonitis can develop - a very dangerous inflammation of the peritoneum, which, in turn, can seriously affect the process of childbirth.
Therefore, in some situations, the removal of an umbilical hernia is carried out even taking into account the harmfulness of anesthesia for the fetus, since the drug will harm less than the delay in treatment.
Operation Methods
There are several methods for performing surgical intervention for a restrained umbilical hernia:
- Mayo method - the adhesions are separated, and the intestinal rings can be set into the peritoneum. A rather long and difficult recovery period, as well as the risk of developing a recurrence of umbilical hernia, is considered a negative factor of such an intervention.
- By Sapezhko - the navel hole is sutured through the use of tissues, muscle fibers are straightened. The disadvantages are the same as in the previous version of the surgical intervention. This type of operation is performed with a small degree of bulging.
- Alloplastic methods - the implant is placed above or below the umbilical opening. The advantages of this process are accelerated rehabilitation, as well as a reduced number of relapses. It is worth noting that the installation of the mesh, even expensive, is fraught with consequences that may be associated with possible transplant rejection - the accumulation of serous matter in the abdominal space, suppuration, etc.
Hernioplasty cannot be performed on pregnant women, as this can cause a number of troubles, for example, infection of a cavity with a wound and possible unforeseen childbirth due to a stress reaction for the pregnant woman's body.
When the manipulations to eliminate the restrained umbilical hernia are completed, then the rehabilitation period will follow, during which the patient should be under the supervision of a surgeon. With the development of certain complications, he will take safe measures to solve this problem.
It is worth summing up and indicating that one of the most provoking factors is weight gain during pregnancy.