Recurring Abdominal Pain

Your answers indicate that you have abdominal pain primarily in the upper part of your abdomen or near your navel. But you don't have any of the more common triggers that cause recurrent abdominal pain.

Some causes that might be considered to explain your upper abdominal pain include

• abdominal adhesions

• celiac disease (celiac sprue)

• chronic pancreatitis

• Crohn's disease

• gallstones

• gas

• gastritis

• gastroesophageal reflux

• Giardiasis (Giardia infection)

• indigestion (dyspepsia)

• irritable bowel syndrome

• lactose intolerance

• migraine headache

• painful menstruation (dysmenorrhea)

• peptic ulcer disease

• stress.

Because the list of possible causes is large, your evaluation will begin with the basics: a physical examination, and possibly some blood or urine tests. It is likely that your doctor will order a test to view the abdominal structures, such as an ultrasound, esophagogastroduodenoscopy ("EGD" or "endoscopy," in which you swallow a small camera on a flexible tube), a series of x-rays after you swallow barium ("barium swallow" or "upper GI series"), or a computed tomography scan (CT scan). The specific test that is selected will be dependent upon additional details that you provide to your doctor, and your past history of medical problems.