Telephone: (617) 983-6712. Fax: (617) 983-6770. www.mass.gov/dph/fpp. The Massachusetts Food Protection Program, within Bureau of Environmental Health in the Department of Public Health, strives to ensure a safe and wholesome food supply in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
A hiatal hernia is a condition in which the upper part of the stomach bulges through an opening in the diaphragm. The diaphragm is the muscle wall that separates the stomach from the chest. The diaphragm helps keep acid from coming up into the esophagus. When you have a hiatal hernia, it's easier for the acid to come up. The leaking of acid from the stomach into the esophagus is called gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
Hiatal hernia (also called hiatus hernia and paraesophageal hernia) occurs when part of the stomach protrudes into the thoracic cavity through the esophageal hiatus of the diaphragm.ith a paraesophageal or rolling hernia, part of the stomach rolls into the thorax; usually, this occurs anterior to the esophagus. The hernia is frequently irreducible. A paraesophageal hiatal hernia is diagnosed by the position of the gastroesophageal junction.