Abdominal Pain

What is Abdominal Pain?

The abdomen is what is known as the stomach in lay man terms and refers to the area beneath the diaphragm and spreading downwards up to the hip region. Any discomfort associated with this area is usually referred to as abdominal pain and may be caused by a physical act either being hit or squeezed or by other factors which include illness or disease or even the food one eats which may react adversely with one causing pain and discomfort. There are many organs found in the abdomen and they include the stomach, small intestines, colon, liver, gallbladder, spleen and the pancreas.

Abdominal pain can arise from any of these organs which may be affected by a number of internal or external factors. These may be physical which include being hit by an object either accidentally of otherwise or due to various medical conditions like excessive acidity which causes wounds and ulcers in the stomach lining or inflammation of internal organs. Eating food that is not fresh or that which is contaminated is also a common cause of abdominal pain and is commonly referred to as food poisoning. One feels extreme discomfort in form of cramps or bloating and swelling of the stomach which sometimes leads to the feeling of urgent release of watery waste commonly known as diarrhea.

There may also be other organs not located in the abdomen which when affected by illness or disease, manifest themselves through abdominal pain. A person with a lung infection for example, will complain of abdominal pain although the problem is not emanating from the abdomen. Also women with menstrual period pains also complain of abdominal pain despite the pain coming from the uterus or the ovaries which are also not located in the abdomen. This is called “referred pain” in medical terms as the pain is not originating from the location it is being felt. However since the pain is felt in the stomach area, it is commonly referred to as abdominal pain.

When an organ in the abdomen is abnormally stretched or distended, it causes serious abdominal pain which doctors may diagnose as intestinal obstruction or blockage and proceed to administer the appropriate treatment. One may also feel pain when they fail to pass stool normally which is at least once per day and this will lead to serious pain and discomfort which more often than not can be relieved with the help of a laxative or in extreme cases may call for surgery. It is important to eat a balances diet with a healthy dose of vitamins, fiber and roughage and to drink at least eight glasses of water per day to avoid abdominal pains caused by infrequent passing of stool and urine. Other not so common causes of abdominal pain are caused by vein blockage which leads to lack of blood supply to a particular organ in the abdomen for example the small intestines. This causes acute pain in the abdominal area and may call for surgery to unblock the vein and help resume normal blood flow and relieve the pain.