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Medical Author:

Jerry R. Balentine, DO, FACEP

Jerry R. Balentine, DO, FACEP

Dr. Balentine received his undergraduate degree from McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland. He attended medical school at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine graduating in1983. He completed his internship at St. Joseph's Hospital in Philadelphia and his Emergency Medicine residency at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the Bronx, where he served as chief resident.

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Medical Editor:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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A doctor will perform a physical exam.

• If a person has an obvious hernia, the doctor will not require any other tests to make the diagnosis (if the person is healthy otherwise).



• If a person has symptoms of a hernia (dull ache in the groin or other body area or pain with lifting or straining but without an obvious lump), the doctor may feel the area while increasing abdominal pressure (having you stand or cough). This action may make the hernia able to be felt. If a person might have an indirect inguinal hernia, the doctor will feel for the potential pathway and look for a hernia by inverting the skin of the scrotum with his or her finger.



• The doctor may order an x-ray, ultrasound, or CT scan.

The doctor will ask questions about the hernia:

• When was it first noticed (unless the doctor discovered the hernia during a physical exam)?



• Does the lump come and go? Can it be pushed back inside?



• Has the lump grown larger or painful?



• What activities give you discomfort from the hernia?

Your doctor may recommend surgery and refer you to a surgeon for the procedure.