What could be the cause of chronic abdominal pain?
The diagnosis is chronic abdominal pain if you experience discomfort for more than 3 months. The pain may be constant or go away and then come back.
The causes are:
- Lactose intolerance;
- Bloating;
- Irritable bowel syndrome;
- Peptic ulcer;
- Menopause and others.
Functional chronic abdominal pain
It is real, true pain that has been present for more than 6 months and the patient has difficulty talking about a specific cause, for example, the discomfort is not related to food, stomach movements, menstruation, toxins, or medication.
Functional pain is so severe that it reduces a person's quality of life. As a rule, in such cases, the exact cause is unknown.
Symptoms characteristic of chronic abdominal pain are individual - symptoms change with each attack, even during an episode.
However, common signs are:
- Piercing or dull pain;
- You sweat, cry or bend forward due to acute pain;
- Pain that lasts for several minutes or hours;
- You may complain of pain both in the navel area and in any part of the abdomen;
- Pain may or may not be related to food, diet;
- Pain at any part of the day or at night;
- Abdominal pain is accompanied by headache, vomiting, pain in limbs;
- You are not bothered by the feeling of hunger.
Consult a doctor immediately in case of the following symptoms:
- High fever;
- Loss of appetite;
- Weight loss;
- Pain wakes you up;
- Blood in the urine or stool;
- Jaundice;
- Strong nausea and vomiting;
- Difficulty swallowing;
- Swelling in the legs or abdomen.
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