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abdominal pain

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Q: Anyone with abdominal pain had a CT scan and told they had thickening of the small intestine?
My husband has been having severe abdominal pain. CT ruled out kidney stone, masses, blocked bowel, but the report says there are two loops of small intestine that are thickened. The doctor put him on antibiotics for inflammation, and we go back in 2 weeks, but I am worried about this being something serious.

A: This sounds like diverticulosis. The area you described is the most common for diverticulosis – particularly the sigmoid colon. The muscular wall of the colon grows thicker with age. A diet low in fiber can lead to small, hard stools (poop) which are difficult to pass. Thickening of the colon wall may result from increasing pressures required by the colon to eliminate stool. Over time, strong contractions of the colon push the inner intestinal lining outward through gaps in the muscle walls, forming diverticula.
Most patients with diverticulosis have few or no symptoms. The diverticulosis condition may be diagnosed incidentally during testing for other colon problems. The most common symptoms include abdominal cramping, constipation, diarrhea and bloating. These symptoms are related to difficulty of passing the stool along the left colon narrowed by diverticular disease.Antibiotics should help the immediate problem but your husband will need to do something for the long term. If you are the shopper & cook in the household, it will fall to you to purchase & prepare foods that are high in fiber. Change your drinking habits as well – switch to water. Doctors are not good – terrible in fact – when it comes to teaching patients how to eat based on the diagnosis. If you do not receive detailed dietary info on how to prevent further problems,ask for a referral to a registered dietician. You can also Google diverticulosis- you will find a wealth of very good information. Good luck to you. Thanks for the great question.

Q: Why do I get abdominal pain right after eating a banana?
When I look up abdominal pain and bananas, they say to eat bananas because they are bland. Not me. They cause immediate pain. I’ve experimented with other foods to ensure it is in fact bananas causing it.

A: The “worst” criticism of bananas that I can find on the net is that they are a mild laxative. For me, however, they are a strong, almost instantaneous laxative, sometimes accompanied by stomach cramping, which can be severe. I have heard others warn against eating bananas that are too green, saying this causes discomfort for them. My doctor has no information on these effects.

Bananas are known to be a very good source of potassium. My personal theory is that, for some people, ingesting a banana results in an intolerably high level of the potassium in the body. The body attempts to rid itself of the “offending” substance as rapidly as possible.

If I am correct , the use of “lite salt” exacerbates the problem, as lite salt is mostly KCl.

BTW, my doctor is still scratching his head over this

Q: Why do I have abdominal pain and cramping after eating?
Had gallbladder removed three ago. First two weeks, no pain, and now abdominal cramping and pain.

A: go to doctor

Q: If someone is vomitting blood and they have abdominal pain is that consider an emergency?
Do you think this person needs to see their primary care physician or go to the ER? What if the abdominal pain is like on the upper right side and its very sharp pain? Can this person die? What could be wrong?

A: Get to the hospital immediately. Any time a person is vomiting blood you should go to hospital. It is an EMERGENCY. Call an ambulance.

Q: Is there abdominal pain in the first couple weeks of pregnancy?
My girlfriend and I are scared that she may be pregnant. She’s been having abdominal pain that lingers but when she moves it’s a sharp pain. Also she’s been quite moody lately. Is abdominal pain a normal symptom of early pregnancy? We took a “special day” and spent hours having sex on and off frequently, so could the pain just be a result of having too much sex in a short amount of time?

A: nope there shouldn’t be any ab pain in the beginning of pregnancy. Although if she is pregnant she could be having an ectopic pregnancy, where the egg implants in the ovarian tubes instead of the uterus. i would have her make a doctors appointment.

I never had any ab pain in my pregnancy till about 26 weeks.

Q: Is it common to have abdominal pain when you have a low back disc rupture?
Can low back disc pains cause abdominal pain? Or would it be 2 different things going on?

A: Very possible. But abdominal pain can also radiate to the back (as is the case with a number of abdominal disease processes, I would recommend consulting your GP (or Orthopedic specialts if you are already under his care for the disk problem)

It is common for Sacral-Lumbar muscle pain to slowly involve the abdominal complex of muscles if allowed to weaken with the back. If you have a prolapsed disk, similar pain can ensue. And of course you may not be using core muscles as much due to the pain you have. They slacken and cause more muscular pain.

Once you have ruled out abdominal pathology for your pain, discuss with your physician exercises that can increase your core strength. This might be the best way to bring everything back into line and attenuate you discomfort.

Q: How do i get rid of an abdominal pain?
I just started having an abdominal pain a few minutes ago. I haven’t had abdominal pain in quite a while. It’s been a really long time. But it just came right now. What do i do to help it get better?

A: What side and what area is the pain?
Anything could be wrong that can cause abdominal pain. Is it upper right, lower right, upper left, lower left?
Do you have a fever with this?
Depends on where it is and what’s causing it. If you’re possibly pregnant it could be that or if it’s on one side it could be ectopic pregnancy (go to e.r.), ovarian cysts (see doctor), appendicitis (go to e.r.), gallbladder (go to e.r. or doctor), gas pains (take antigas), stomach problem or acid in there (see doctor), could be overgrowth of bacteria in there that can be fatal (see doctor and may need e.r.). It could even be menstrual cramps but unless you post back with where you’re hurting it’s hard to guess and no one can really diagnose on the Internet. Eating something if you have a life threatening situation is not a good idea. I had an intestinal infection and didn’t know until I got seen by a gastroenterologist who gave me antibiotics and something for the bowel cramping. I initially thought ovarian cyst, dr. thought appendix, and then other doctor found it to be an intestinal infection and told me it would have been fatal had I not gone in. If you edit your post with additional information I can give you more info and possibilities but I would see your doctor if the pain is severe.

Q: What is the relationship between STD’s and abdominal pain?
What about an STD would cause abdominal pain? Is this a serious sign? Why or why
not?

A: Chlamydia and Gonorrhea can cause abdominal pain. While these STDs are completely curable with antibiotics, they can also cause serious health issues if left untreated – so it is important to get tested and treated if necessary.

If you are unsure of what you may have been exposed to, and have had unprotected sex (vaginal, anal or oral) it is recommended that you complete a full panel of STD tests, as you cannot diagnose yourself on symptoms alone. Most of the time, STDs are completely free of symptoms.

For more information about STDs and testing, feel free to contact us directly. We’re here to help!

Q: Anyone know why I am having abdominal pain after a cystoscopy?
I had a cystoscopy a week ago and i am having severe abdominal pain on my right side and also lower back pains.
I was taking pain relievers given by my doctor and it seemed to help with this but now the pain is beginning to be unbearable. The pain is especially worse in the mornings…
Someone have an idea why this is happening??? Should I tell my doctor asap or wait till my next appointment a month away?

A: talk to your doctor ASAP!!!!

Q: Question on abdominal pain and varying temperature of the body?
Hi! We do not have health insurance right now and my daughter has severe abdominal attacks. For two years, we have wasted a lot of time and money on doctor visits that have not helped my daughter.

Recently she had another abdominal attack, related to her cycle. She gets them so bad that she ends up doubling over in pain, and often gets headaches and throws up. What’s worse is that she’s extremely allergic to ibuprofen and/or Motrin, and Pamprin. She’s also allergic to citric acid and most fragrances.

Another issue that we recently discovered is that when she gets these pains, her abdomen gets really cold while the other parts of her body is warmer, or sometimes it’s the opposite situation (abdomen extremely warm, but the rest of the body is cold).

She’s been to several doctors and has even had an ultrasound and gall bladder study. All show nothing is wrong. The attacks last up to 2 to 4 hours and then afterwards she feels fine. Any suggestions?

A: Excately what would happen to me for years!!!! And trust me, it is PAINFUL. There is really nothing that can be done by doctors if she is allergic, except to give birth (now I have a three year old, and since I gave birth, No Pain). However I did notice that something did help with the pain. Before the period starts, have your daughter take an enema. Sometimes the gas that is built up in the intestines contributes to the menstrul pains. It helped me a lot. Good luck and tell her that somebody out there knows what she is going through and sympathizes.

Q: What are some of the causes of abdominal pain?
My daughter has been complaining of abdominal pain for over a week. I took her to the emergency room and the doctor said she was constipated and gave her an enema. She was fine for two days and now says her stomach hurts again. She says the pain is right behind her navel. Could it be her appendix? Or maybe a hernia? She was born with navel hernia, but it went away when she was a year old. Could it have come back?

A: Constipation has an easy cure. Adding 30 % fiber to the diet, will take care of it. Vegetables and fruits are a good source of fiber, as is Raisin Bran Cereal for breakfast. If her problem still persists. then have her see a Doctor to check out the appendix or the possible hernia,

Q: What can cause abdominal swelling and pain?
I have had constant pain in the abdomen for about 2 days. It started with lower abdominal pain then fainting and vomiting… that subsided… then the pain turned to stabbing pains, then I had stomach spasms, I went to the doctor that is what they said they were….. Now it’s a day later and I have abdominal swelling (all over abdominal region, which is twice as large as usual) and pain (lower pain), it’s hard to walk and stand up straight, what could this be, should I be conserned ? (I can’t go to the dr untill tomorrow)

A: These symptoms could be due to (partial) small bowel obstruction. Other (and less concerning causes) are of course also possible.

You have swelling and also had vomiting and fainting. There are a few potential causes of bowel obstruction. What is typically done first are some routine labs and an abdominal plain radiograph (x-ray) to look for any distended loops of bowel and air-fluid levels. Sometimes, a CT of the abdomen and pelvis is also performed. Bowel obstruction is a potentially serious problem and its suspicion would justify making an emergency room visit. Based on the limited information you provided, there is not much else that I can say.

Q: What can I put in a patient’s nursing careplan who has abdominal pain which is not yet diagnosed?
I need to make a nursing careplan for an 80 year old patient who has undiagnosed abdominal pain. What are some nursing focuses, actions and rationales that I can put in my careplan?

A: Focus on any distention, I&O, diet, BM’s. Actions would be palpate the abdomen, listen for bowel sounds in all 4 quadrants v/s etc. The rationals are self explanatory. why you did all the actions you did. Don’t forget to ask about their pain level. Thats all I can give you without writing out a complete Care plan. Good Luck..!!

Q: Is acupuncture an effective way to cure abdominal pain?
My father has pancreatic cancer and seems to be in a lot of abdominal pain. The medication that has been prescribed for him doesn’t seem to be working. I have been reading about how acupuncture has been known to relieve some of it. Do you have any success or horror stories regarding this?

A: First of all let me say that I know you’re in allot of pain seeing your dad like this.I know my dad was my hero and you sound the same.Acupuncture works by the person inserting the needles into different receptors in the body.I don’t see why they wouldn’t be able to relieve the pain by doing this in the right areas.The problem being is that as soon as the treatment is over,I’m not sure how long the relief would last.You’d have to ask someone that specializes in this to find out.Is your dad seeing a pain management doctor.You don’t mention what stage he’s in, or what he’s taking but unfortunately the pain will get worse.I’ve never heard of acupuncture being used for any type of cancer pain.

Q: What could cause rapid weight gain and abdominal pain?
Over the last two months I have gained 17 lbs with no change to my usual diet. Over the last month I have also had on and off again lower abdominal pain. No chance of pregnancy and I’m a few weeks away from my period. I’ve never had abdominal pain in the middle of a cycle before and the weight gain has me concerned. Does anyone have any idea what this might be? Answers greatly appreciated.

A: Ovarian or Cervical cancer. A friend of mine had cramping and she gained weight…turned out to be cervical cancer. I hope its not that in your case =[

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