Good Morning / Hello, All of the effects below is what I have. I can slighted see or/and feel the hernia / pouch in my upper chest. How serious is this? what should I do? Is there a solution other than going under the knife? Thank you ============================================ In general, these rings prevent the contents of stomach from entering back in esophagus, and when herniated, the ring slides in chest, and the barrier for reflux of stomach content to esophagus gets disrupted. Since the size/cavity of stomach is wider than esophagus, if it protrudes in chest, it becomes like a small pouch in chest. Commonly, hiatus hernia is caused due to sliding of stomach through diaphragm. The symptoms this can produce depends on how much of stomach part has herniated and are almost always those of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). Common symptoms are heart-burn, regurgitation, and naus