Hernia is a common and prevalent surgical condition, especially in the elderly and children. Hernias can occur in any part of the body, but extra-abdominal hernias are the most common. The protrusion of abdominal contents through a fissure or defect in the abdominal wall or a weak area into the skin to form a reversible or irreversible mass is called an extra-abdominal hernia (also known as an abdominal wall hernia). Extra-abdominal hernia includes inguinal hernia, femoral hernia, umbilical hernia, white line hernia, semilunar hernia, incisional hernia, fistula hernia, etc. Among them, inguinal hernia is the most common and is commonly known as “hernia” or “small intestine strangulation”. The causes of inguinal hernia in humans are twofold: on the one hand, human anatomical and physiological factors, i.e. congenital factors, and on the other hand, acquired predisposing factors. Congenital factors such as weakness of the inguinal region itself and the passage of blood vessels and spermatic cord (female round ligament) increase the pressure on the inguinal region three times when the human body is upright; acquired triggers include various factors that cause increased abdominal pressure such as coughing and asthma, constipation, prostate hypertrophy, roughly difficult urination, heavy physical labor, pregnancy, and cirrhotic ascites. The incidence of inguinal hernia is very high and is a common disease, more common in men than women, with 44% incidence in elderly men over 75 years of age, with about 20 million cases per year worldwide and a conservative estimate of 2-4 million cases in China. Both men and women can get hernias, but inguinal hernia is more common in men, while femoral hernia, umbilical hernia and incisional hernia are more common in women, and the treatment is the same as that for men. The clinical manifestation of inguinal hernia is the presence of a reducible mass in the inguinal region, reducible in the sense that the mass appears when the patient is upright or increases abdominal pressure and can disappear when lying down. Many patients with inguinal hernia can be asymptomatic, with only lower abdominal discomfort and swelling in mild cases, but in severe cases it can affect work and life. Inguinal hernia can be fine for decades, but it can also happen at any time. Once the hernia cannot be retracted and becomes embedded, abdominal pain, intestinal obstruction, and even intestinal necrosis and perforation can occur and endanger life. Every year, dozens of cases of emergency surgery are performed in Chaoyang Hospital due to ingrown hernia, and many of them have to undergo intestinal resection because of intestinal necrosis, and there are also cases of death due to untreated ingrown hernia every year. From a medical point of view, inguinal hernias in adults are not self-healing. Conservative treatments for inguinal hernia include hernia belt, hernia brace, Chinese medicine and herbal medicine, etc. Various conservative treatments may help to relieve the symptoms or slow down the development of the disease, and some patients with other serious diseases that are temporarily inoperable can also be treated conservatively first, but these conservative methods can only delay the disease process and cannot achieve a cure. The likelihood is also very low. Surgery is the only reliable way to cure inguinal hernia in adults. Patients should seek early diagnosis and treatment, and the earlier the surgery, the better the results. In children, surgery is recommended after the age of 2 years and before the age of 6 years because a child’s hernia can affect the development of the testicles and the physical and mental health of the child, but of course, individual children with more serious hernias or frequent incarcerations need early surgery. Surgical treatment of inguinal hernia is divided into two categories: traditional suture surgery and modern tension-free hernia repair surgery. Traditional surgery emphasizes “suturing”, just like taking a thick silk thread and sewing the defect directly to a torn underwear pocket, while modern tension-free hernia repair surgery emphasizes “patching”, which means patching the defect with various kinds of patches. The traditional surgical method has been performed for more than 100 years and has made a great contribution to medicine, and it still has indications. Its shortcomings include high suture tension, severe pain, high anesthesia requirements, fasting before and after surgery, many infusions, slow postoperative recovery, the need for bed rest and accompaniment, the impossibility of outpatient surgery, many complications, and a high recurrence rate, with a recurrence rate of about 10%-15% after surgery for primary hernia and up to 33% after reoperation for recurrent hernia. Modern surgery is tension-free repair, which is the use of repair material (patch) to repair the defect of the abdominal wall, characterized by tension-free, light pain, fast recovery and low recurrence rate, etc. There are two main surgical methods. This procedure can be performed in a day surgery room and can be discharged the same day. With the popularity of minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques, laparoscopic hernia repair is gradually being mastered and applied by more surgeons. With the unique advantages of posterior approach surgery, laparoscopic hernia repair can achieve less trauma, very low recurrence rate, shorter return to work period and better postoperative comfort. Both of these procedures have become internationally recognized as the recommended hernia treatment. The recurrence rate of tension-free hernia repair has been reported to be less than 1% both nationally and internationally. However, it should be emphasized that the surgery should be performed by a hernia specialist, or at least a surgeon with specialized training in tension-free hernia repair surgery, and there are data from abroad showing that the results of surgery by hernia specialists are significantly better than those of general surgeons. This treatment has been carried out in China for more than 14 years and the safety and effectiveness of the hernia patch has been recognized by the medical community worldwide. The patch is non-absorbable and grows completely with the body in about 3 months after implantation and does not need to be removed for the rest of its life. Beijing Chaoyang Hospital was the first in China to carry out this kind of tension-free hernia repair surgery in February 1998, and was the first in China to establish the Hernia and Abdominal Wall Surgery Treatment Center in May 2001. The department not only has the only specialized medical team of hernia and abdominal wall specialists in China, but also has a modern, humanized, clean and comfortable hernia ward with 30 approved high- and medium-grade beds, advanced hardware facilities, and adequate medical and nursing strength. As the national training center for hernia repair, the department has carried out a lot of work on the in-depth treatment and basic research of hernia and abdominal wall diseases. Performed more than 12,000 cases of various tension-free hernia repairs, including inguinal hernia, incisional hernia, stoma hernia, umbilical hernia, esophageal hiatal hernia, pediatric hernia, etc. The longest follow-up period is 14 years, and the recurrence rate is less than 1%. In order to popularize the knowledge of hernia, spread the advanced concept of hernia treatment and free patients from hernia, our department has decided to hold a large charity clinic with the theme of “Care for Hernia and Family” on March 7 every year since 2012 at the Beijing West Hospital of Chaoyang Hospital. “At that time, Professor Chen Jie, a famous hernia specialist, will lead all medical and nursing staff of the Department of Hernia Surgery to explain the knowledge of hernia prevention and treatment and the latest treatment concept, answer patients’ questions and solve their problems, and advocate to name March 7 every year as Hernia Day. Time: March 7, 2012, 2pm-4pm Venue: Chaoyang Hospital, Beijing West Campus Auditorium (5 Jinyuan Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing) Experts: Chen Jie, Director, Liu Sujun, Director, Shen Yingmu, Deputy Director, Wang Minggang, Deputy Director and all medical staff of Hernia Surgery Department