Illustration of a femoral hernia A section of the large intestine colon has broken through muscles of the femur and the superficial fascia fibrous connective tissue on the surface of the muscle This hernia is situated close to the femoral artery red and vein blue and lies above fatty tissue yellow near the inguinal region A hernia is the protrusion of an organ through a weak area of muscle or other tissue that normally contains it Most commonly the intestine protrudes through the abdominal wall usually caused by a congenital weakness in the wall As here a hernia sometimes results from lifting heavy objects weight gain or straining Surgical treatment may be necessary