Abdominal Pain
Abdominal pain appears in the abdomen (stomach, belly) and can arise from abdominal organs like the gallbladder or appendix, or other organs like the spine or heart.
Severity of abdominal pain does not always correlate with severity of an underlying disorder: constipation or gas, built in the bowel, may cause debilitating pain, while developed pancreatic cancer may not cause any symptoms. Check for causes of severe abdominal pain.
Abdominal Quadrants
One vertical and one horizontal line flowing through the navel (umbilicus) divide abdomen on four abdominal quadrants: right upper (RUQ), right lower (RLQ), left upper (LUQ) and left lower (LLQ).
Picture 1. Four abdominal quadrants
(source: Wikimedia)
Abdominal pain can be denoted according to abdominal quadrant in which it appears:
- Right Upper Quadrant or RUQ pain may arise from the liver, gallbladder, main bile duct, upper part of the ascending colon, right part of the transverse colon, stomach, duodenum, right kidney, ureter or adrenal gland, right lung membrane (pleura), lower right ribs, abdominal muscles, skin or spinal nerves.
- Left Upper Quadrant or LUQ pain may arise from the pancreas, stomach, left part of the transverse colon, upper part of the descendent colon, second part of the small intestine (jejunum), right kidney, ureter or adrenal gland, spleen, heart, left lung membrane, lower left ribs, abdominal muscles, skin or spinal nerves.
- Right Lower Quadrant or RLQ pain may arise from the lower part of ascending colon, last part of the small intestine (ileum), appendix, right ureter, right spermatic cord, right ovary and uterine tube, abdominal muscles, skin or spinal nerves
- Left Lower Quadrant or LLQ pain may arise from lower part of the descending colon, sigmoid colon, small intestine, left ureter, left spermatic cord, left ovary and uterine tube, abdominal muscles, skin or spinal nerves
Pain in the middle upper abdomen is called epigastric pain and may arise from the stomach, lower part of esophagus, pancreas, heart, spine or aorta.
Pain in the middle lower abdomen is called hypogastric or suprapubic pain and may arise from the bladder, spine or uterus.
Causes of abdominal pain that can appear in any abdominal quadrant: abscess, endometriosis, adhesions, benign and malign abdominal tumors, metastases.
Further Reading :
Hi i’ve had stomach problems A LOT the past few months, lack of hunger, pain in my left side etc. (ibs supposedly is cause of side-pain) Lately i’ve had a bloating thing has just sprung up as a new symptom the past week, bad enough to nearly make me go to the ER one night because i could NOT sleep without feeling that i could not breath, at least not correctly. Like i could only take 1/2 breaths.
I DID talk to my doctor about it, HAPPEN to have an appt that day, since it was the first time we chalked it up to an anomoly that came from eating more than normal that day. And by me drinking TOO much water in an effort to relieve the pressure, and accidentally making the pressure worse. But it keeps happening now, thankfully not at night so i can’t sleep, but during the daytime after i get up, and not wanting to ease-up no matter what i do. Extra antacids, water, and it causes light-headedness which really bothers me like the breathing process is being blocked in some way, or airway restricted.
SO my main question, how does bloating of the stomach, and/or a hiatal hernia, which i possibley have at this point after years of reflux etc, make you feel breathless? What exactly IS that, and how best can you combat it.
I JUST had a barium xray this morning which should help to clear things up, i HOPE. That GI doctor guiding the xrays asked if i’ve had my galbladder checked yet, and i know will next. I will also request a viral panel.
Thanks for ANY help with this in advance.
Dave