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8 Causes Of Periumbilical Pain
You may experience abdominal pain around or behind your belly button due to some health conditions, including gastroenteritis and appendicitis. Some cases may require emergency treatment.
Periumbilical pain is a type of abdominal pain that is localized in the region around or behind your belly button. This part of your abdomen is referred to as the umbilical region.
It contains parts of your stomach, small and large intestine, and your pancreas.
There are many conditions that can cause periumbilical pain. Some of them are quite common, while others are rarer.
Read on to learn the possible causes of periumbilical pain and when you should seek medical attention.
Gastroenteritis is an inflammation of your digestive tract. You may also have heard it referred to as the "stomach flu." It can be caused by a viral, bacterial, or parasitic infection. Viral gastroenteritis is also called the stomach flu.
In addition to abdominal cramps, you may experience the following symptoms:
Gastroenteritis usually doesn't require medical treatment. Symptoms should resolve within a few days. However, dehydration can be a complication with gastroenteritis due to water loss through diarrhea and vomiting.
Dehydration can be serious and require treatment, especially in children, older adults, and people with a weakened immune system.
Periumbilical pain can be an early sign that you have appendicitis. Appendicitis is inflammation of your appendix.
If you have appendicitis, you may feel sharp pain around your navel that eventually shifts to the lower right side of your abdomen. Additional symptoms can include:
Appendicitis is a medical emergency. If it's not treated quickly, your appendix can rupture. A ruptured appendix can cause potentially life threatening complications.
Learn more about the emergency signs and symptoms of appendicitis. Treatment for appendicitis is surgical removal of your appendix.
A peptic ulcer is a type of sore that can form in your stomach or upper small intestine (duodenum).
Peptic ulcers can be caused by a variety of things, such as infection with Helicobacter pylori bacteria or long-term use of drugs like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or aspirin.
If you have a peptic ulcer, you may feel a burning pain around your belly button or even up to your breastbone. Further symptoms include:
Your doctor will work with you to determine the right treatment for your peptic ulcers. Medications may include:
Pancreatitis can cause periumbilical pain in some cases. Pancreatitis is an inflammation of your pancreas.
Acute pancreatitis can come on suddenly. It can be caused by various things, including alcohol, infection, medications, and gallstones.
In addition to slowly worsening abdominal pain, symptoms of pancreatitis can include:
A mild case of pancreatitis can be treated with bowel rest, intravenous (IV) fluids, and pain medication.
More severe cases typically require hospitalization.
If the pancreatitis is due to gallstones, surgery may be required to remove the gallstones or the gallbladder itself.
An umbilical hernia is when abdominal tissue bulges out through an opening in the abdominal muscles around your belly button.
Umbilical hernias most often occur in infants, but they can also occur in adults.
An umbilical hernia can cause a feeling of pain or pressure at the site of the hernia. You may see a bulge or bump. If an umbilical hernia becomes severely painful, tender, or red, go to the emergency room. This could indicate an obstruction or lack of blood supply to the tissues caught in the hernia.
In infants, most umbilical hernias will close up by the age of 2. In adults with an umbilical hernia, surgery is typically recommended in order to avoid complications such as intestinal obstruction.
Small bowel obstruction is a partial or complete block of your small intestine. This blockage can prevent the contents of your small intestine from passing further into your digestive tract. Left untreated, it can become a serious condition.
Several things can cause small bowel obstruction, including:
In addition to abdominal pain or cramps, you may experience:
If you have a small bowl obstruction, you will need to be hospitalized.
While at the hospital, your doctor will give you IV fluids and medications to relieve your nausea and vomiting. Bowel decompression may also be performed. Bowel decompression is a procedure that helps reduce pressure within your intestine.
Surgery may be needed in order to repair the obstruction, especially if it's caused by a previous abdominal surgery.
An aortic aneurysm is a serious condition caused by the weakening or bulging of the walls of your aorta. Life threatening problems can occur if the aortic aneurysm ruptures. That can allow blood from the aorta to leak into your body.
As an abdominal aortic aneurysm gets larger, you may feel a steady, pulsing pain in your abdomen.
If an abdominal aortic aneurysm ruptures, you'll feel sudden and stabbing pain. The pain may radiate to other parts of your body.
Additional symptoms include:
Treatment for abdominal aortic aneurysm may include lifestyle changes such as controlling your blood pressure and quitting smoking. Surgery or placement of a stent may also be recommended.
A ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm is a medical emergency and requires immediate surgical intervention.
Mesenteric ischemia is when blood flow to your intestines is interrupted. It's typically caused by a blood clot or embolism.
If you have mesenteric ischemia, you may initially feel severe abdominal pain or tenderness. As the condition progresses, you may also experience:
If you suspect mesenteric ischemia, seek immediate medical attention. Treatments can include surgery and anticoagulation therapy.
How is periumbilical pain diagnosed?To determine the cause of your pain, your doctor will first take your medical history and perform a physical examination.
Depending on your medical history, symptoms, and physical examination, your doctor may perform additional tests to help reach a diagnosis. These may include blood, stool, and urine tests, as well as imaging tests or an endoscopy.
What causes pain around the belly button?Belly button pain, also known as periumbilical pain, can have causes such as appendicitis, a hernia, and many other conditions. In addition, during pregnancy, you can feel pain around the belly button, known as round ligament pain.
How do I get rid of periumbilical pain?The treatment for periumbilical pain depends on the underlying cause. There are many possible causes of periumbilical pain. Some of them, such as gastroenteritis, are common and typically go away in a few days. Others, such as mesenteric ischemia, are medical emergencies and need to be addressed right away.
When should I go to the ER for belly button pain?If you're experiencing periumbilical pain that lasts more than a few days, you should make an appointment with your doctor to discuss your symptoms.
Seek immediate medical attention if you are experiencing the following symptoms in addition to periumbilical pain:
Periumbilical pain refers to discomfort in the area surrounding or behind your belly button. This section of your abdomen is known as the umbilical region, and it contains various organs such as the stomach, small and large intestines, and pancreas.
If you've experienced periumbilical pain for several days or have concerns about your periumbilical pain, make an appointment with your doctor to discuss your symptoms and treatment options.
Gallbladder Pain: Reasons Why Your Belly Hurts
Your gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ that's tucked below your liver. You probably don't think much about it -- until it hurts.
Don't ignore gallbladder pain. Only a doctor can properly diagnose what's causing it, provide treatment, and help you avoid further complications. (Photo Credit: WebMD)
The gallbladder stores and releases bile, a greenish-colored fluid that helps your body digest fats. Whenever you eat, your gallbladder contracts and releases the bile. The bile then flows to your small intestine, the duodenum.
When something goes wrong with your gallbladder or the bile ducts, the upper right side of your abdomen may hurt. You may also feel:
Other common symptoms include yellow skin and eyes (known as jaundice), weight loss, and color changes in your urine or bowel movements.
You have several organs in your abdomen, and if you have pain in that area, it can be challenging to figure out what's causing it. Here are some conditions that could mimic gallbladder pain:
Pancreatitis. Your pancreas is in the back of your abdomen, near the duodenum. If it's inflamed, it can cause abdominal pain similar to gallbladder pain. The main difference, however, is that with pancreatitis, you usually also have nausea, vomiting, and unexplained weight loss. Your heart may race and your bowel movements may be foul-smelling.
Kidney stones. Although your kidneys are at the back, kidney stones can cause abdominal pain as well as back pain. You may notice that your urine is a different color than usual (red, brown, or pink), and it may be cloudy or foul-smelling.
Stomach ulcers. Pain in your stomach from an ulcer may feel like gallbladder pain, but you would also probably feel bloated. You may also have heartburn and burp a lot.
Inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD (Crohn's disease or colitis). IBD can cause abdominal pain, but it usually causes diarrhea too. You may see blood in your bowel movements and lose weight unintentionally.
Gastroenteritis. This infection in your gut, sometimes called stomach flu, can cause the same types of symptoms as gallbladder pain, except it usually also causes diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and cramping.
There are several reasons why you may feel gallbladder pain. They include:
Gallstones
This is the top reason for gallbladder pain. You get them when bile clumps together into hard masses. Gallstones can vary in size, ranging from tiny specks to as large as a golf ball. If they get big enough, these stones can block bile from flowing out. That can lead to a gallstone attack, which may feel like a sudden pain in the upper right part of your belly.
These attacks often happen after a big steak dinner or other fatty meals, and they can last many hours. But most people who have gallstones don't know it. These "silent" stones don't cause problems in your organs. Diagnostic tests such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP), endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), blood tests, or other imaging tests can show if you have gallstones. Your doctor can get rid of them with surgery, medication, or even shockwaves.
Bile duct stones
These are either gallstones that get stuck in your bile ducts or stones that form there. They may give you no trouble until they block the bile ducts. Then you might have serious pain in your belly that comes and goes for hours at a time. Your skin and eyes might turn yellow, and you might feel like throwing up. Your doctor can remove the bile duct stones by threading an endoscope (a thin tube with a light at the end) through your mouth down to the bile ducts.
Perforated gallbladder
This can happen when your gallstones over time cause a hole in the walls of your organ. It's rare, but it can be deadly. The upper right part of your belly might hurt. You also may have a high fever, nausea, and vomiting. You'll need medical treatment or surgery right away.
Gallbladder abscess(empyema)
Empyema of the gallbladder is caused by an infection from the buildup of bile resulting from duct obstruction (including gallstones). The infection may resist treatment with antibiotics, and the abscess may need to be drained. A serious abscess can result in a tear, allowing the infection to enter the inside lining of the abdomen (peritonitis).
Gallbladder inflammation
Also called cholecystitis, gallbladder inflammation can happen for several reasons, including trauma, illness, infection, or tumors. It may also result from bile buildup in your gallbladder due to gallstones. Less often, other culprits can include certain bacteria or problems in your bile ducts. When your gallbladder gets inflamed and swollen, symptoms include pain in your belly, including the area just above your stomach. You also may feel an ache in your back or right shoulder blade.
Usually, an ultrasound and other imaging tests can diagnose it. You may need surgery to remove your gallbladder. (Your body can work fine without it.) Without treatment, the organ can burst.
Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)
PSC is a liver disease that damages your bile ducts. It's progressive, meaning it gets worse over time. About 4 out of 5 people who have PSC also have inflammatory bowel disease. PSC can lead to liver failure. Many people have no symptoms. You might feel tired or have pain in the upper right side of your abdomen or itchy skin. This condition is often found when routine blood tests show your liver isn't working right.
Gallbladder cancer
Gallbladder cancer is rare and hard to diagnose. More often than not, you won't have symptoms until the cancer has spread. Signs may include abdominal pain, especially on the upper right side, as well as weight loss, jaundice, and belly bloating. A family history of gallstones; being older, female, or obese; and eating unhealthy foods can make you more likely to get cancer in the gallbladder.
Bile duct cancer
You may not have symptoms in the early stages of this cancer. If you do, it's often because the bile duct is blocked. Jaundice is the most common symptom, along with itchy skin and light-colored or greasy poop. If your tumors are big enough, you may have belly pain, especially below your ribs on the right side. Surgery gives you the best chance at a cure. But most bile duct cancers are found too late for that. In that case, you may need radiation or chemotherapy to shrink the tumors first.
Bile duct scars
Narrowed bile ducts from scar tissue can keep the bile from flowing out of your liver and gallbladder into the small intestine. That can make you hurt on the right side of your abdomen where the organs are. You also might feel itchy or tired, have a lack of appetite, and get jaundice, night sweats, or fever.
Several things can cause the scars, including bile duct stones, injury, infections, alcohol and drugs. Your doctor can confirm it with a procedure called endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), which gives them an inside peek into your bile and pancreatic ducts.
Some of the more minor complications include:
More serious complications of gallbladder disease include:
Gallbladder pain treatment depends on what's causing the pain in the first place. If you think you have gallbladder pain, you should speak with your doctor as soon as possible. This is important so you can be diagnosed as early as possible to prevent complications.
In the meantime, you may want to try some home treatments to ease the gallbladder pain. You can:
Once you've seen your doctor, other options for gallbladder pain treatment may be:
If these treatments don't work or aren't an option, your doctor may refer you to a surgeon for surgery to remove your gallbladder.
If you have a lot of gallstones that can't be removed, your gallbladder is inflamed or infected (called cholecystitis), or you have cancer, you might need a gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy).
This surgery can be done in one of three ways:
Laparoscopic. Most cholecystectomies are done this way now because it's easier on the patient and has fewer complications. Instead of one large incision (cut), laparoscopic surgery is done through three or four small incisions. Using long-handled tools, one that has a camera on the end (laparoscope), the surgeon can look on a screen to see inside the abdomen and remove the gallbladder through one of the incisions. A laparoscopic cholecystectomy is called a minimally invasive surgery.
Open. Before laparoscopic gallbladder removal, open surgeries were the only way to remove the gallbladder. Now, they're done only if the gallbladder disease is too complicated or if your doctor suspects you may have cancer. Your surgeon would make one large incision, about 4-6 inches long, to get to your gallbladder. Recovery from this type of surgery takes longer.
Robotic. A newer way to remove a gallbladder, robotic surgery is another type of minimally invasive surgery. Long-handled surgical tools and a camera are inserted in small incisions, just like with laparoscopic surgery. However, instead of the surgeon using the tools, the tools are controlled by the surgeon at a computer console. The advantage of robotic surgery is that the tools can bend and move in ways a surgeon's hands can't.
Gallbladder pain after removal
You may expect to not have gallbladder pain after it's been removed, but there is a condition called post-cholecystectomy syndrome that affects up to 40% of people who have the surgery.
If you have this syndrome, you may feel much like you did before the surgery. You can have abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Doctors don't know for sure what causes the syndrome. But many think it's caused by bile that leaks into the stomach and the surrounding area, or stones that are still in the bile ducts. The symptoms don't last long for most people, but they can last longer (for many months) in a few. If it's too severe or lasts long, you may need another surgery so the doctor can find out what's causing the pain.
Lifestyle changes can help keep your gallbladder healthy.
Refresh your diet. Here are some recommendations:
Eat more:
Try to cut back on foods that may cause gallbladder pain:
Problems with your gallbladder often can be traced back to too much cholesterol -- a fat from meat, dairy, and other animal sources. But don't be afraid of good unsaturated fats from foods such as olive and canola oil, salmon and other fatty fish, and nuts.
Exercise regularly. Aim for 30 minutes of brisk walking and other moderate workouts every day.
Keep a healthy weight. If you're heavy, aim to lose pounds slowly and avoid fasting. Otherwise, it can raise the level of cholesterol in your gallbladder.
Problems with your gallbladder or bile ducts should be checked out. Talk to your doctor right away if you:
If you had gallbladder surgery, call your doctor if you:
Gallbladder pain can have several causes. Some people can manage or reduce how often they have gallbladder pain by changing their diet and exercising. Others may need surgery to remove their gallbladder. Contact your doctor if you have gallbladder pain so you can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible, possibly avoiding any complications.
What will the ER do for gallbladder pain?
If your pain is severe, you should be checked as soon as possible to rule out something more serious and to make you more comfortable. The emergency room doctor will likely do an ultrasound to look for stones and to check how big your gallbladder is. If necessary, your doctor may also order other imaging tests, such as a CT scan, MRI, or hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid (HIDA) scan to get a view of what is going on inside.
How do I know if my pain is from my gallbladder?
Only a doctor can confirm if you're having pain from your gallbladder. There are other conditions that may mimic gallbladder pain. So, it's important to see your doctor as soon as possible if you are having gallbladder pain.
What does a gallstone attack feel like?
Gallstones can cause sudden and severe pain. The duration of the gallbladder pain attacks may vary, ranging from as short as 30 minutes to several hours long. You might feel the pain from gallstones in the upper mid-back (between the shoulder blades), in the right shoulder, or the upper part of the right side of your abdomen. Other symptoms include nausea and vomiting.
Why Does My Stomach Hurt After Eating? 13 Potential Reasons, According To Doctors
Have you ever experienced stomach pain or instant bloating after a meal and thought, "Why does my stomach hurt after eating?" You're not alone. Eating delicious food should be an enjoyable experience, but getting an upset stomach immediately afterward can be a total bummer. You might also have gas, heartburn, constipation, or even diarrhea—which can make you feel super concerned. So, what gives?
The truth is, it can be tricky to figure out the exact culprit of your digestive upset. Maybe you notice general discomfort after eating a certain food, or you think a gluten intolerance could be at play. Maybe you have tummy issues when you travel, but not during meals at home. Other common causes include acidic foods, alcohol, caffeine, and of course, regular ol' indigestion, which can come and go (more on that soon).
If your stomach hurts after eating, it might not necessarily be a major cause for concern, but it could be a sign of a serious condition. Ahead, gastroenterologists share some of the most common causes (both medical and non-medical) to help you identify what's going on—and start feeling better ASAP.
Meet the experts: Natalie Allen, RD, is an instructor of biomedical sciences at Missouri State University. Thomas VanderHeyden, DO, is a gastroenterologist at Michiana Gastroenterology. Scott Gabbard, M, is a gastroenterologist at the Cleveland Clinic. Ashkan Farhadi, MD, is a gastroenterologist at MemorialCare Orange Coast Medical Center. Rudolph Bedford, MD, a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California. Jeffrey Jacobs, MD, is a gastroenterologist at Illinois Gastroenterology Group.
What causes stomach pain after eating? General Causes 1. Eating Too Quickly
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