SAN DIEGO -- Showing one's belly button appears to be one of the most popular fashion statements today.

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Learn More About Belly Button Surgery

But if you plan to sport that Britney Spears low-cut look, you'd better have a good-looking umbilicus. And if your belly button isn't worth baring modern surgery has the answer.

Tricia Richardson used to be somewhat embarrassed by her "outie" belly button.

"At parties I'd say, 'You want to see circus tricks?' I'd lie on the floor, put up my legs and out popped my belly button," Richardson said.

Her ability to pop out her belly button is known as an umbilical hernia, a problem where the internal sac is protruding through the abdominal wall. And it only got worse when Richardson had a child.

"My husband called it an alien!" Richardson told 10News.

In severe cases the condition could cause pain and bowel complications.

Richardson went to cosmetic surgeon Dr. Robert Shumway to repair her belly button. In a 45-minute outpatient procedure, Shumway tacked down the herniated tissue and created a dime-sized cavity, just right for bikinis and low-cut jeans.

Shumway told 10News that the procedure was "very safe" because the work is done outside the abdominal cavity.

With her surgery complete, Richardson told 10News that she is now considering a belly ring. That will have to come after she heals, however. The tissues are expected to take several weeks to heal, meaning she'll have to avoid sit-ups, weight lifting and strenuous exercise.