 Abdominal Pain
Symptoms
What is a
symptom?
In medical
terminology, symptoms and sign are two different terms.
Abdominal pain symptoms are defined as perceptions, ideas or
feelings about a change or changes in sensations of the abdomen
and they relate to the thinking of the patient and better known
to him or her. Nausea, back pain, and dizziness are symptoms.
Symptoms are subject to the perception of the patient
only.
Contrary to
the abdominal pain symptoms, the signs of
abdominal pain are objective evidences of changes; evident to
the patient, doctors or others concerned about the condition or
disease of a patient. Presence of blood in urine and yellow
color of eyes and skin are signs.
What is abdominal
pain?
Any pain in
stomach is popularly defined as abdominal pain and it is a
misconception.The area
below the ribs and above the waste line is the abdominal area
and any one or more of the abdominal organs; like intestines,
pancreas, kidneys, gall bladder, appendix or the internal
lining of the abdominal cavity, when impaired on any account,
may inflict abdominal pain.
Abdominal Pain
Symptoms
Abdominal pain symptoms are
almost always, forerunners of some or the other disease.
Following are some common abdominal pain
symptoms:
Fever,
Anorexia or loss of appetite, Nausea, irregular stools with or
without blood, irregular ; interrupted ,painful or too frequent
urination, irregular; short or difficult breathing, unusual and
unpleasant abdominal sensation in abdominal cavity during
pregnancy, hypersensitive abdomen to touch, persistent dull and
localized abdominal pain, severe and sudden abdominal
pain.
Relevance of abdominal pain to
diseases
Symptoms,
forewarn us about the onset of some disease or diseases. Some
diseases are related to the symptoms as in the
following:
Appendicitis: Abdominal pain starting
from navel and increasing progressively with simultaneous
movement towards right lower abdomen is indicative of
appendicitis.
Diverticulitis
Mild, left
lower abdominal pain, accompanying fever, irregular stools,
nauseating feeling of chill and abdominal cramps indicate
diverticulitis, a disease caused by small protrusions in
intestinal tract and known as diverticula.
Ectopic
pregnancy: Severe left or right lower abdominal pain
during pregnancy is indicative of attachment and growth of the
fertilized egg in a place other than womb. Known as ectopic
pregnancy, it is a dangerous condition requiring immediate
medical attention
Hepatitis: persistent
abdominal pain along with mild fever, joint pain, nausea,
fatigue, anorexia or loss of appetite, intense yellow color of
urine, discolored stools, yellow color of skin, and yellow
color in the white of eyes indicates viral hepatitis and needs
immediate medical attention.
Intestinal
obstruction: Watery or obstructed stools,
stool like malodorous vomited material and undulating abdominal
pain or cramps indicate Intestinal
Obstruction.
Pancreatitis: Upper abdominal pain;
that is severe and tends to intensify after heavy meals, often
accompanied by fever nausea or vomiting and accelerated pulse
rate, indicates malfunction, impairment or infection of
Pancreas.
Poisoning: Sudden abdominal pain
especially after food consumption associated with nausea,
vomiting or abdominal cramps indicates Food Poisoning usually
caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Some chemicals too cause
poisoning.
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