American Academy of Pediatrics Provides Guidance on Repairing Inguinal Hernias in Infants, Children

The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a clinical report, “Assessment and Management of Inguinal Hernias in Children,” observing that inguinal hernia repair is one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures in infants and children. The clinical report, published in the July 2023 issue of Pediatrics (online June 26), provides an overview of questions surrounding optimal timing and approach to hernia repair and identifies best practices in managing inguinal hernias. The incidence of inguinal hernias is approximately 8 to 50 per 1,000 live births in term infants and is much higher in extremely low birth weight infants. An inguinal hernia, which often appears as a bulge or swelling in the groin or scrotum, requires surgical repair to prevent a more severe condition that occurs when organs from the abdomen become trapped in the hernia, called an incarcerated hernia. More than 90% of children with inguinal hernia are boys, according to the report, which was written by the AAP Committee on Fetus and Newborn, the AAP Section on Surgery, and the AAP Section on Urology. While hernia recurrence after repair is low, the AAP recommends for best outcomes that inguinal hernia repairs are performed by pediatric surgical specialists, pediatric urologists, or general surgeons with a significant yearly case volume in repairing inguinal hernias in children.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.