A 40-year-old woman of north Indian origin was brought to the surgical emergency room 2 hours after being attacked by a bull near her home. The animal had struck her with its horns over her right lower abdomen. The patient complained of pain and swelling over the involved area. On examination, her vital signs were normal. There was no associated head, chest, pelvic, or limb injury. A bruise and a visible, ill-defined swelling over the right lumbar and umbilical regions were seen. On palpation, the area was tender, and the swelling decreased on gentle pressure, with gurgling sounds. A defect of 8 cm in maximum diameter could be palpated with irregular, ill-defined margins. On asking the patient to cough, bowel loops could be palpated through the defect. Since the patient was hemodynamically stable and the diagnosis clinically apparent, a transverse laparotomy was performed incorporating the site of injury. An irregular defect was found involving all subcutaneous layers of the abdominal wall, and was repaired with a preperitoneal mesh. There was no associated intra-abdominal injury. The patient's recovery was uneventful and she was discharged on the 3rd postoperative day. She had no recurrence after 1 year of follow-up.
A 6-year-old boy was admitted to the emergency department 3 days after a bicycle accident. The handlebar of his bicycle traumatized his abdominal wall above the left iliac crest. Twelve hours before the admission he noticed a palpable mass and a minor bruising to this specific point (Fig. ).\nThe physical examination revealed the presence of a painless swelling measuring 8 × 3 cm2 and did not reveal any pathological sign from the abdomen. The swelling was reducible, disappeared in supine position and increased by coughing. The diagnosis of a HH was suspected and confirmed by ultrasound that showed the disruption of internal and external oblique and transverse muscle (6 × 1.5 cm2) and the projection of omentum through the hernia without other associated internal organ injuries (Fig. ). The hematological and biochemical tests were normal. We suggested the admission of the child in our clinic for further clinical monitoring but the parents denied.\nThe reassessment after 2 weeks of rest at home showed an obvious size reduction of the hernia. Because of the significant size difference a MRI evaluation was decided, that confirmed that the disruption size was 3 × 0.7 cm2. In the follow up a month later, the hernia was no longer palpable and the ultrasonography identified a defect <2 mm without herniation.