Abdominal pain

The abdominal pain ( abdominal pain or abdominal pain) is one of the most common symptoms that lead to health resource use. Abdominal pain can be triggered by a variety of causes. These causes include specific diseases of organs of the abdominal cavity, diseases that take place outside of the abdominal cavity, but also discomfort that is caused by psychological disorders. The causes of the symptom abdominal pain range from harmless mood disorders such as bloating up to acute life-threatening diseases such as mesenteric infarction. According to the variety of needs in the abdominal organs and the fact that disease outside the abdomen can cause abdominal pain, the differential diagnosis of abdominal pain can be a major technical challenge and requires often the use of extensive clinical, laboratory chemical, imaging and medical procedures.

Causes

Organic causes

All in the abdomen ( intra-abdominal ) existing or adjacent thereto organs can cause abdominal pain in case of illness. These are

• The gastrointestinal tract ( " GI " ) with esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine ( jejunum and ileum) and large intestine ( cecum with appendix, ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon, sigmoid colon and rectum )
• The hepatobiliary system, ie the liver biliary tract and gall bladder,
• The pancreas ( pancreatic )
• Spleen,
• The urogenital tract, so the kidneys and adrenal glands, ureters and the bladder,
• The vascular system, so the aorta, inferior vena cava, mesenteric arteries and veins, the portal vein,
• The abdominal wall ( umbilical and incisional hernia, hernia ).
• The ovaries, fallopian tubes

Causes beyond the abdominal cavity can also cause abdominal pain. The most important are the posterior wall infarction, and other heart diseases, diseases of the spine, especially the spondylodiscitis, and metabolic diseases (eg, the " Pseudoperitonitis diabetic " into type 1 diabetes, the onset of ketoacidotic coma or even the porphyrias ). In addition, various types of poisoning can cause abdominal pain. Also pneumonia with Begleitpleuritis or pulmonary embolism may be accompanied by abdominal pain.

Nonorganic causes

Acute stress and chronic overload ( " burnout ") and most of psychosomatic disorders may be associated with abdominal pain without an organic disorder can be found. The frequency of these are also referred to as "functional abdominal pain " disorder can be seen in the often used colloquialisms "That makes me stomach ache! " Or "That upsets my stomach! " Discretionary.