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Inguinal hernia: a bulge in the groin, the signs that cannot wait, the tests, surgery, and after
For anyone who has found a bulge in the groin or scrotum, anyone told they have an inguinal hernia, anyone deciding about surgery or just home from it, and parents of a baby or child with a bulge. It passes on, by name, what the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK, part of the NIH) says: what an inguinal hernia is and who gets one, the signs, when a stuck hernia needs help right away, the causes and tests, surgery and watchful waiting, and what to expect after. It builds the questions to ask and prints a card for your notes. Nothing is saved.
Right now
- A hernia bulge that is suddenly bigger, will not go back in, is red or very painful, or comes with fever, nausea or vomiting? NIDDK says seek medical help right away: a strangulated hernia is life threatening. Go to an emergency room now; if the pain is severe, you are vomiting, or you cannot get there safely and quickly, call 911 (ours).
- Just had hernia surgery? NIDDK says call your doctor right away for bleeding, fever or chills, vomiting, worsening pain or swelling, problems breathing, or problems urinating. Severe trouble breathing: call 911 (ours).
- Thoughts of suicide? Call or text 988, any hour, free (ours).
More help
- On this site: Abdominal adhesions, and a blocked intestine · Appendicitis · Constipation · An upset stomach, heartburn or constipation: find the right page.
- Alongside it: Urinary retention · Pain that will not go away · An enlarged prostate · How digestion works · Symptom diary · My medicines.
- When it is hard to pay: When you need a doctor and can’t pay · Medical bills. Getting ready: Get ready for your appointment.
- In an emergency: Help right now (988, 911). All our free tools.
An upset stomach, and not sure this is the right page? The pages on this site for throwing up, diarrhea, heartburn and constipation, on one list.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor or nurse has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 20, 2026 on NIDDK’s (NIH) page Inguinal Hernia (last reviewed September 2019). The numbers (about 27 percent of men and 3 percent of women; males 8 to 10 times more likely; most common at ages 75 to 80 and from birth to 5; about 70 percent of men who wait need surgery within 5 years; pain gone within 2 weeks; back to work in 3 to 5 days) are NIDDK’s, and we add none. Ours: calling 911 when the pain is severe, you are vomiting or you cannot get there; not waiting to see if a stuck bulge goes back; telling a child’s doctor about a bulge; 988; the questions to ask; the card; the links to our other pages; and the order of the steps. What we left out: NIDDK’s references, its pictures, its outside links and its section on research studies; we name no medicines, no brands and no hernia belts. Nothing you tick or type here is saved or sent.