Diagnosis
A medical diagnosis should always begin with a detailed medical history and a physical examination. By providing information on the exact localisation, pain quality, course of symptoms and other factors, doctors can in many cases already make a tentative diagnosis. Depending on the suspected diagnosis, further diagnostics can now be used to confirm it or determine its severity.
In addition to laboratory tests of the blood, ultrasound (sonography) is often used for abdominal pain. Depending on the patient, these methods allow most abdominal organs to be well visualised without exposing the patient to radiation. In some cases, sectional imaging such as a CT or MRT is also necessary.
Therapy
Depending on the underlying cause, the treatment of abdominal pain can vary considerably. For example, the treatment of a simple stomach flu usually consists of symptomatic therapy with painkillers, medication against nausea and vomiting and sufficient fluid intake. If certain clinical pictures such as inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach, chronic inflammatory bowel disease or inflammation of the gall bladder are responsible for the symptoms, there are very specific therapies available, ranging from the administration of medication to surgery.
The exact therapy methods can be found in the respective main articles (see cross-links). In the case of abdominal pain, a diet that is as gentle as possible should generally be chosen. Extremely rich, fatty or spicy food should be avoided.
Mostly mild soups are well tolerated, which should contain sufficient salts in case of diarrhoea or vomiting. The local application of heat (heat pad) can additionally improve the symptoms. There are many different home remedies that promise to improve the pain when used.
First of all, various tea infusions should be mentioned here. Peppermint, chamomile, caraway-fennel–aniseed or ginger tea in particular are frequently used. Here, care should be taken to ensure sufficient infusion time so that all ingredients in the tea are dissolved and can develop their effect.
Furthermore, depending on the underlying cause, heat can lead to a significant reduction of pain. We recommend either a hot-water bottle or a cherry stone pillow that can be heated in the microwave. Warm, moist wraps are also said to have an effect, especially in cases of cramping abdominal pain.
A kitchen towel is dipped into a bowl of hot vinegar water, 1 tbsp vinegar to 1l water, and wrung out. Then place it on the stomach, cover with a dry cloth and leave to work for 15 minutes. .
Depending on the quality of the pain felt and the accompanying symptoms, various homeopathic remedies are recommended. For colic and cramping pain, for example, the use of remedies such as Colocynthis, Staphisagria or Nux vomica is recommended. For burning abdominal pain, however, the use of Arsenicum album and Phosphorus is recommended.
However, there are many other remedies that can be used for central abdominal pain: Bryonia, Lycopodium or Argentum nitricum. In general, however, if the symptoms are very pronounced, it is always advisable to consult a physician in order to identify possible serious illnesses, prevent complications and ensure adequate treatment, for example with antibiotics. .