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Where Does Upper Abdominal Pain Come From?

15th March, 2011 - Posted by health news - No Comments

When people talk about pain in the stomach area, they may actually be talking about pain that does does not begin in their actual stomach. Terms like stomachache, stomach pains and stomach discomfort are often used to describe any discomfort that is felt in the area between the bottom of the rib cage and lower abdomen.

For our purposes in this article, we’ll, concentrate only on conditions that cause pain in the upper part of the abdomen – more or less surrounding the navel. We won’t cover conditions like appendicitis or pains in the area of the groin that begin in the lower regions of the abdomen.

That said, here are the most typical causes of sharp pain and discomfort in the stomach.

Excessive enthusiasm – This is another way of saying you ate too much, or ate too fast.

Eating something you wish you hadn’t – a number of foods set off adverse reactions, or perhaps they’re just too difficult for your digestive system to handle.

Viral gastroenteritis – Of course, there are brief stomach illnesses that can cause intense upper abdominal pain. One of the most common is a stomach virus (usually called the stomach flu), which produces nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Gastritis – This problem is characterized by inflammation or erosion in part of the lining of the stomach. Stomach ulcers are a variety of gastritis, and they can result in severe, extremely sharp stomach pain.

Reflux – Just about everyone is familiar with a problem that’s often described as heartburn. Heartburn, referred to as acid reflux, occurs when stomach acid erupts past the valve separating the stomach from the esophagus. Tissues in the lining of the esophagus are significantly more sensitive than those in the stomach, so part of the esophagus becomes damaged by acid. This results in tingling or burning pain.

Cancer – It’s unfortunate that most types of cancer do not cause pain until they reach a dangerous stage. But at a certain point, sharp pain starts to appear. This is also the case with stomach cancer. Stomach cancer doesn’t occur much in the U.S., but all have it are probably going to experience sharp upper abdominal discomfort.

Gallbladder issues – When you feel sharp upper abdominal pains shortly after you have a meal that features a lot of fat, you may be experiencing a gallbladder attack. Gallbladder problems generally happen when too much cholesterol overwhelms the gallbladder all at once, and the gallbladder is unable to process it all as it normally does. Attacks not only cause upper abdominal pains, but can also trigger discomfort in the side and back in the area of the shoulders.

Gallstones, another type of gallbladder trouble, can cause severe upper abdominal pains as well.

Liver problems – There are many different types of liver problems that cause upper abdominal pains. Liver problems may include cirrhosis and hepatitis, which are kinds of liver inflammation. upper abdominal pain is a common symptom of another liver-related disorder known as ascites. Ascites is a build-up of fluids in the abdominal area.

Pancreatitis – Pancreatitis is an inflammation of the pancreas. One of the main functions of the pancreas is to help control the way the human body processes sugar.

Spleen – A condition called splenomegaly means you have an enlarged spleen. When you have splenomegaly, it is usually a warning sign some other underlying disorder or disease. Infection, anemia, or cancer are among the possibilities. A ruptured spleen, which is usually caused by a traumatic injury of any type, will cause upper abdominal pains.

The list above are just some of the many possible causes of severe upper abdominal pains. In many cases, such pain will be temporary and will resolve without treatment. However, extremely intense upper abdominal pains, or moderate upper abdominal pains persisting longer than several hours is worth a call to your doctor.

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