Inguinal Hernia in Premature Infants

Abstract

I was interested to read the article by Harper et al. in the July 1975 issue on the incidence of hernias in premature infants weighing 1,000 gm or less at birth. According to these authors, no one thus far has recognized the remarkably high incidence of inguinal hernias (30%) in premature infants weighing less than 1,000 gm. I should like to point out, however, that a high incidence of such hernias in very-low-birth-weight premature infants was reported by Knox1 in 1959 and Walsh2 1962.