ABSTRACT
Herniorrhaphy represents themost common procedure performed in pediatric surgical practice and the vast majority of such repairs are inguinal, umbilical, and epigastric. The incidence of inguinal hernia is between 0.8% and 4% of live births and occurs secondary to the failure of the processus vaginalis to obliterate during the seventh gestational month. The patent processus thereby allows a spectrum of pathologies to manifest, including scrotal hernias, communicating hydroceles, and hydrocele of the cord. Similarly, failure of the umbilical ring to undergo spontaneous closure results in an umbilical hernia. The true incidence of this hernia is unknown due to the high rate of spontaneous closure, but predilection for the African-American race and the premature infant is well known. Epigastric hernias result from defects in the linea alba and while occurring in about 5% of children, the etiology is unknown.
