Abdominal pain
By Mayo Clinic staffOriginal Article: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/abdominal-pain/MY00390
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Definition
Abdominal pain is pain and discomfort that occurs in your abdomen. Your abdomen is the section of your torso between your chest and your pelvis. Other terms used to describe abdominal pain are stomachache, tummy ache, gut ache and belly ache.
Everyone experiences abdominal pain from time to time. Abdominal pain can be mild or severe, and it may be continuous or come and go. Abdominal pain can be short-lived (acute) or occur over weeks and months (chronic).
Abdominal pain has many potential causes. Many causes aren't serious, such as gas pains or a pulled muscle.
Call your doctor right away if you have abdominal pain so severe that you can't move without causing more pain or you can't sit still or find a comfortable position. Also seek immediate medical help if pain is accompanied by other worrisome signs and symptoms, such as bloody diarrhea or chest pain.
Causes
Some abdominal pain isn't focused in one area of the abdomen. This type of pain can be caused by:
- Appendicitis
- Crohn's disease
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (high levels of ketones in the blood)
- Diverticulitis
- Injury
- Intestinal obstruction
- Intussusception (in children)
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Lead poisoning
- Mesenteric lymphadenitis (swollen lymph nodes in the folds of membrane that hold the abdominal organs in place)
- Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
- Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) (infection of the female reproductive organs)
- Peritonitis (infection of the abdominal lining)
- Sickle cell anemia
- Strained or pulled abdominal muscle
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Ulcerative colitis
- Uremia (buildup of waste products in your blood)
- Urinary tract infection (UTI)
- Viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu) (stomach inflammation)
Causes of lower abdominal pain, sometimes described as pelvic pain, include:
- Appendicitis
- Cystitis (bladder inflammation)
- Diverticulitis
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Endometriosis
- Intestinal obstruction
- Mittelschmerz (pain associated with ovulation)
- Ovarian cysts
- Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) (infection of the female reproductive organs)
- Salpingitis (inflammation of the fallopian tubes)
Causes of upper abdominal pain include:
- Angina (reduced blood flow to the heart)
- Appendicitis
- Cholangitis (bile duct inflammation)
- Cholecystitis (gallbladder inflammation)
- Duodenitis (inflammation of the initial portion of the small intestine)
- Gallstones
- GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease)
- Heart attack
- Hepatitis (liver inflammation)
- Intestinal obstruction
- Mesenteric ischemia (decreased blood flow to the intestines)
- Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
- Nonulcer stomach pain
- Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
- Peptic ulcer
- Pericarditis (inflammation of the tissue around the heart)
- Pleurisy (inflammation of the membrane surrounding the lungs)
- Pneumonia
- Pneumothorax (lung collapse caused by air that leaks inside chest wall)
- Pyloric stenosis (in infants)
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
Causes of pain in the center of the abdomen include:
- Appendicitis
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (high levels of ketones in the blood)
- Injury
- Intestinal obstruction
- Mesenteric thrombosis (blood clot in a vein carrying blood away from your intestines)
- Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Uremia (buildup of waste products in your blood)
Causes of lower left abdominal pain include:
- Appendicitis
- Cancer
- Crohn's disease
- Diverticulitis
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Endometriosis
- Inguinal hernia
- Injury
- Intestinal obstruction
- Kidney infection
- Kidney stones
- Mittelschmerz (pain associated with ovulation)
- Ovarian cysts
- Seminal vesiculitis (inflammation of the seminal vesicles)
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Torn colon
- Tuboovarian abscess (pus-filled pocket involving a fallopian tube and an ovary)
- Ulcerative colitis
Causes of upper left abdominal pain include:
- Angina (reduced blood flow to the heart)
- Cancer
- Diverticulitis
- Empyema (infection of the lining around the lungs)
- Enlarged spleen (splenomegaly)
- Fecal impaction (hardened stool that can't be eliminated)
- Gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining)
- Heart attack
- Hiatal hernia
- Injury
- Kidney infection
- Kidney stones
- Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
- Pneumonia
- Pulmonary infarction (loss of blood flow to the lungs)
- Pyloric stenosis (in infants)
- Ruptured spleen
- Shingles
- Spleen infection
- Splenic abscess (pus-filled pocket in the spleen)
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Torn colon
Causes of lower right abdominal pain include:
- Appendicitis
- Cancer
- Cholecystitis (gallbladder inflammation)
- Diverticulitis
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Endometriosis
- Inguinal hernia
- Injury
- Intestinal obstruction
- Kidney infection
- Kidney stones
- Mittelschmerz (pain associated with ovulation)
- Ovarian cysts
- Salpingitis (inflammation of the fallopian tubes)
- Seminal vesiculitis (inflammation of the seminal vesicles)
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Tuboovarian abscess (pus-filled pocket involving a fallopian tube and an ovary)
- Viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu) (stomach inflammation)
Causes of upper right abdominal pain include:
- Appendicitis
- Cholangitis (bile duct inflammation)
- Diverticulitis
- Fecal impaction (hardened stool that can't be eliminated)
- Gallbladder cancer
- Gallstones
- Gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining)
- Hepatitis (liver inflammation)
- Hiatal hernia
- Injury
- Intestinal obstruction
- Kidney cancer
- Kidney infection
- Kidney stones
- Liver abscess (pus-filled pocket in the liver)
- Liver cancer
- Liver hemangioma
- Pancreatic cancer
- Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
- Peptic ulcer
- Pericarditis (inflammation of the tissue around the heart)
- Pleurisy (inflammation of the membrane surrounding your lungs)
- Pneumonia
- Pulmonary infarction (loss of blood flow to the lungs)
- Pyloric stenosis (in infants)
- Shingles
- Stomach cancer
When to see a doctor
Call 911 or emergency medical assistance
Seek help if your abdominal pain is severe and is associated with:
- Trauma, such as an accident or injury
- Pressure or pain in your chest
Seek immediate medical attention
Have someone drive you to urgent care or the emergency room if:
- Pain is so severe that you can't sit still or need to curl into a ball to find relief
- Pain is accompanied by bloody stools, persistent nausea and vomiting, skin that appears yellow, severe tenderness when you touch your abdomen or swelling of the abdomen
Schedule a doctor's visit
Make an appointment with your doctor if your abdominal pain worries you or lasts more than a few days.
In the meantime, find ways to ease your pain. For instance, eat smaller meals if your pain is accompanied by indigestion. Avoid taking over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others) because these can cause stomach irritation that may worsen abdominal pain.
- Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2011. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/109418463-2/0/1701/0.html. Accessed Oct. 15, 2010.
- Schiller LR. Abdominal Pain. American College of Gastroenterology. http://www.acg.gi.org/patients/gihealth/aps.asp. Accessed Oct. 15, 2010.
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