what’s missing from this picture? that’s right, little odin’s rather prominant umbilical hernia has disappeared quite quickly! where once he had what appeared to be an extreme “outie” belly button, he now has the most modest of “innies”.

micropreemies are born with underdeveloped muscles which is why they are prone to all manner of hernias. in addition to the umbilical version, odin also had bilateral inguinal hernias and a hiatal hernia.

while umbilical hernias are often harmless, they can sometimes cause problems if the intestines begin to protrude through the weakened opening, so we’re happy to see that that odin’s belly is strong enough to keep everything where it belongs.