Overview

Abdominal pain is pain that you feel anywhere between your chest and groin. This is often referred to as a stomach ache, belly ache, or tummy ache. There can be many different causes of abdominal pain including, but not limited to, gallstones, ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, appendicitis, etc., not all of which are related to gastrointestinal causes. Abdominal pain may vary from mild to severe.

The following list is a guideline and is not a complete list. Please talk with your physician if you have any concerns about your abdominal pain.

Symptoms:

You may need to seek immediate medical attention if:

• You are also vomiting blood or have blood in your stool.
• You are unable to move your bowels.
• You have pain in your chest, neck or shoulder.
• You have difficulty breathing.
• You have pain that is sudden and sharp.
• Your abdomen is stiff, hard, and tender to touch.
• The pain is so severe that you can't sit still or need to curl into a ball to find relief.
• You are pregnant and experiencing pain.