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Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffGo the emergency room if you have severe abdominal pain that makes you so uncomfortable that you can't sit still. You may be referred for immediate surgery to diagnose and treat your condition.
If your abdominal pain is moderate and predictable — for example, it always begins soon after eating — call your doctor for an appointment. When you call to set up an appointment, you may be referred immediately to a specialist, such as a gastroenterologist or vascular surgeon.
Because appointments can be brief, and because there's often a lot of ground to cover, it's a good idea to be well prepared for your appointment. Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment, and what to expect from your doctor.
What you can do
- Be aware of any pre-appointment restrictions. At the time you make the appointment, be sure to ask if there's anything you need to do in advance, such as restrict your diet. It's likely that your doctor will ask you not to eat after midnight on the night before your appointment.
- Write down any symptoms you're experiencing, including any that may seem unrelated to the reason for which you scheduled the appointment.
- Write down other medical conditions or procedures you've had, including problems you were treated for in the past, such as a blood clot, and long-term health problems for which you're still being treated.
- Make a list of all medications, as well as any vitamins or supplements, that you're taking. If you take birth control pills, write down the drug's name.
- Take a family member or friend along. Sometimes it can be difficult to absorb all the information provided during an appointment. Someone who accompanies you may remember something that you missed or forgot.
- Write down questions to ask your doctor.
Your time with your doctor is limited, so preparing a list of questions ahead of time can help you make the most of your time together. List your questions from most important to least important in case time runs out.
For intestinal ischemia, some basic questions to ask your doctor include:
- What is likely causing my symptoms or condition?
- Other than the most likely cause, what are possible causes for my symptoms or condition?
- Do you think my condition is temporary or chronic?
- What kinds of tests do I need?
- What treatments do I need right now?
- If I need surgery, what will my recovery be like? How long will I need to be in the hospital?
- How will my diet and lifestyle change after I have surgery?
- What follow-up care and treatments will I need?
- Should I see a specialist? What will that cost, and will my insurance cover it?
- Is there a generic alternative to the medicine you're prescribing me?
- Are there any brochures or other printed material that I can take with me? What websites do you recommend visiting?
In addition to the questions that you've prepared to ask your doctor, don't hesitate to ask questions at any time that you don't understand something.
What to expect from your doctor
Your doctor is likely to ask you a number of questions. Being ready to answer them may make time to go over points you want to spend more time on. Your doctor may ask:
- When did you begin experiencing symptoms?
- Have your symptoms stayed the same or gotten worse over time?
- Have your symptoms been continuous or occasional?
- How severe are your symptoms?
- If your symptoms appear after eating, have they caused you to fear or avoid meals?
- How soon after eating do your symptoms begin?
- Do you tolerate small meals better than large ones?
- Are liquids easier to tolerate than solids?
- What, if anything, seems to improve your symptoms?
- What, if anything, appears to worsen your symptoms?
- Do you or did you smoke? How much?
- Have you lost weight?
- Brandt LJ, et al. Intestinal ischemia. In: Feldman M, et al. Sleisinger and Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/book/player/linkTo?type=bookHome&isbn=978-1-4160-6189-2&eid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-6189-2..X0001-7--TOP&uniq=200844987-3. Accessed May 17, 2010.
- Hauseer SC. Vascular diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/201609212-3/0/1492/0.html. Accessed May 17, 2010.
- Tendler DA, et al. Acute mesenteric ischemia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 12, 2010.
- Tendler DA, et al. Chronic mesenteric ischemia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 12, 2010.
- Atherosclerosis. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Atherosclerosis/Atherosclerosis_All.html. Accessed May 21, 2010.
- Catheter angiography. RadiologyInfo.org. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=angiocath. Accessed May 20, 2010.
- CT angiography (CTA). RadiologyInfo.org. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=angioct. Accessed May 19, 2010.
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