Serving children and families with kidney disease for over 30 years
Abdominal pain - children under age 12
Almost all children have abdominal pain at one time or another. Abdominal pain is pain in the stomach or belly area. It can be anywhere between the chest and groin.
Most of the time, it is not caused by a serious medical problem. But sometimes abdominal pain can be a sign of something serious. Learn when you should seek medical care right away for your child with abdominal pain.
Considerations
When your child complains of abdominal pain, see if s/he can describe it to you. Here are different kinds of pain:
If you have an infant or toddler, s/he depends on your seeing that s/he is in pain. Suspect abdominal pain if s/he is:
Causes
Your child could have abdominal pain for many reasons. It can be hard to know what is going on when your child has abdominal pain. Most of the time, there is nothing seriously wrong. But sometimes it can be a sign that there is something serious and your child needs medical care.
Your child mostly likely is having abdominal pain from something that is not life threatening. For example, your child may have:
Your child may have something more serious if the pain does not get better in 24 hours, gets worse or gets more frequent. Abdominal pain can be a sign of:
Home Care
Most of the time, you can wait for your child to get better and use home care remedies. If you are worried or your child’s pain is getting worse or lasts longer than 24 hours, call your health care provider.
Have your child lie quietly to see if the abdominal pain goes away.
Offer sips of water or other clear fluids.
Suggest that your child try to pass stool.
Avoid solid foods for a few hours. Then try small amounts of mild foods such as rice, applesauce, or crackers.
Do not give your child foods or drinks that are irritating to the stomach. Avoid:
Do not give aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen (Tylenol), or similar medicines without first asking your child's health care provider.
To prevent many types of abdominal pain:
When to Contact a Medical Professional
Call your doctor if the abdominal pain does not go away in 24 hours.
Seek immediate medical help or call your local emergency number (such as 911) if your child:
Call your doctor if your child has:
What to Expect at Your Office Visit
Talk to the provider about the location of the pain and its time pattern. Let the provider know if there are other symptoms like fever, fatigue, general ill feeling, change in behavior, nausea, vomiting, or changes in stool.
Your provider may ask the questions about the abdominal pain:
During the physical examination, the doctor will test to see if the pain is in a single area (point tenderness) or whether it is spread out.
They may do some tests to check on the pain. The tests could be:
Alternative Names
Stomach pain in children; Pain - abdomen - children; Abdominal cramps in children; Belly ache in children
Reference: Medline Plus. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007504.htm
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