As a pregnancy nears term, the testes of the baby start to descend from the abdominal cavity into the scrotum. During the descent, it pulls with it a tissue layer in the abdomen (called peritoneum) into the scrotum. Once the descent is complete, this tissue layer becomes sort of a pouch and its' rear end seals up. Sometimes, the rear end of the pouch fails to seal up, leaving an opening which allows abdominal structures (i.e intestines) to 'escape' into it, hence a 'hernia'.

If the opening of the pouch is small, the risk of strangulation is high if the intestines escape into it. Strangulated intestines will die and rupture and can be life-threatening. Adults can manually push (reduce) the hernias back into the abdomen. They can also tell early if there is pain / discomfort, leading them to seek treatment earlier. Therefore, risk of strangulation (or incarceration of hernia) is higher in babies.

Indirect inguinal hernias are common in baby boys, and the gold standard of treatment is via surgery, called herniorraphy / hernioplasty. No amount of massage / traditional oil /treatment will heal the hernia. The defect needs to be fixed. The surgery no doubt involves giving general anaesthesia to the baby. Every anaesthetic / surgical procedure carries with it some risk but the benefits of the surgery far outweigh the risks. A planned surgery (elective surgery) is far safer than an emergency surgery, done only when the hernia is strangulated.

Good luck

This post has been edited by samowong: Mar 28 2011, 11:43 AM