# Pain in abdomen **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 31, 2006, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817 "2006-05-31T01:37:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/1 "2006-05-31T01:37:53Z")
First of all: **I HAVE A DOCTORS APPOINTMENT FOR THIS, BUT COULDN’T GET IN UNTIL NEXT WEEK!** But I thought I’d see if I could get an idea before going in. For the last 2 weeks I’ve had a dull throbing pain just to the right (my right looking down) of my navel. The outside area of the flesh is not in any way inflammed or red, and does not in any way hurt to touch. Just this dull throb. On the pain scale it’s somewhat minor, more of an annoyance. Just a dull throb. Moving around, breathing, etc. does not change it or make in any worse of better. It does not feel like a muscle pull or any other injury. But just to the right of my navel it’s a deep, dull pain. The pain covers only about the area of a dime. A small little circle of dull pain, just to the right of my navel. I have no other symptoms. No loss of appetite , no change in bowel movements, no change in blood pressure, etc… I actually feel pretty good. Except for this dull throbbing pain. Just half an inch to the right of my belly button. The only 2 things I’ve come up with are intestinal blockage (no othe symptoms of that, though), appendicitis, or pulmonary abdominal embolism:eek: . Any other ideas? ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/2 "2006-05-31T01:38:58Z")
The only 2 things I’ve come up with are intestinal blockage (no othe symptoms of that, though), appendicitis, or pulmonary abdominal embolism:eek: . [/QUOTE] :smack: Is forgetting how to freaking count a symptom of anything deadly? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/3 "2006-05-31T01:49:37Z")
Well, if it were any of the two (three, sir) three things you listed, you ought to be dead after all this time. Or at least unable to access the internet. It’s probably just some sort of abdominal pain of some sort. If it gets worse, tell your doctor to see you sooner. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/4 "2006-05-31T02:31:51Z")
I’m afraid it’s bad news, Sigourney… ---
**Author:** ![Kuizelemartz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e19b73/32.png) [@Kuizelemartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuizelemartz)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/5 "2006-05-31T02:58:35Z")
Possibly strained some never before used muscle while trying out some crazy new sexual positon? Could that be it? huh ? huh ? OK, nevermind, I’ll go with a hernia because no one has guessed that one yet. I expect a prize if I’m right. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/6 "2006-05-31T03:59:47Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > It’s probably just some sort of abdominal pain of some sort. If it gets worse, tell your doctor to see you sooner. Damned if that ain’t the best response about a general pain I’ve ever heard. I wish you lived closer and attended to non-criminals. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/7 "2006-05-31T08:12:51Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > pulmonary abdominal embolism How in the world did your lungs get way down there?! (Pulmonary=Lungs=Pulmonary) keep your “pulmons”[sub](not a real word)[/sub] out of you abdomen, you’ll be fine. :rolleyes: If you had an[_mesenteric_](http://www.emedicine.com/EMERG/topic311.htm) embolism, which one could find in the area where you pain is, you would not be idly writing to us, you be very busy trying to die. Most people’s appendix is low on the right side, an inch or two above the hip. Pain is usually made worse by pressing slowly in the right lower quadrant, while the patient is lying flat, then letting the pressure go abruptly. I don’t recommend you do this to yourself, however. By definition, if you’re having bowel movements, a total obstruction of the bowel is impossible. With a partial obstruction, you’d likely have very liquid diarrhea, and cramping. If it gets worse, insist your doctor see you sooner or go to the ER. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/8 "2006-05-31T08:41:48Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > It’s probably just some sort of abdominal pain of some sort. Sounds like a pretty safe guess to me, but then I’m not really a qualified medical professional. ---
**Author:** ![gabriela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@gabriela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gabriela)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/9 "2006-05-31T10:01:00Z")
Any relation to eating? I’m vaguely thinking gallbladder since I’ve seen stones present in some damn weird ways. But it’s atypical of the gallbladder and I’m betting it turns out to be muscular, in which case, the doc reassures you that it has nothing to do with your life expectancy, and turns you loose to find some way to deal with it yourself. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/10 "2006-05-31T10:15:45Z")
You medical types impress me w/ the recent advances in your science. Twenty years ago it would have been, “Take two aspirins and call me in the morning.” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Fish\_Cheer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fish_cheer/32/17179_2.png) [@Fish\_Cheer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish_Cheer)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/11 "2006-05-31T13:13:49Z")
> [@picunurse](#): > > “pulmons”[sub](not a real word)[/sub] May I suggest [“pulmones”](http://catholic.archives.nd.edu/cgi-bin/lookup.pl?stem=pulmo&ending=nes)? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/12 "2006-05-31T14:20:57Z")
Could it be a mild infection? I think you can get those without having “touch” pain. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/13 "2006-05-31T14:26:58Z")
I’ll bet that by the time you get in to see the doctor the pain will be gone and they will be unable to diagnose it. At least that’s what always seems to happen to me. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/14 "2006-05-31T14:45:23Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > I’ll bet that by the time you get in to see the doctor the pain will be gone and they will be unable to diagnose it. At least that’s what always seems to happen to me. As one of my mentor clinicians taught me to reply when patients asked when they’d feel better: “When the pain is gone, it won’t be there anymore.” ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/15 "2006-05-31T15:08:03Z")
> [@picunurse](#): > > If you had an[_mesenteric_](http://www.emedicine.com/EMERG/topic311.htm) embolism, which one could find in the area where you pain is, you would not be idly writing to us, you be very busy trying to die. I have seen a couple mesenteric torsions in dogs. If the owner notes the problem quickly and drives fast, I can get the dog on the surgical table and get them open before they are put down. If the owner is at work, or is a slow driver, the diagnosis is post mortem. Also, keep in mind that abdominal pain can be _referred_; basically it can be felt at a site distant to the pathology. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/16 "2006-05-31T16:53:57Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > I’ll bet that by the time you get in to see the doctor the pain will be gone and they will be unable to diagnose it. At least that’s what always seems to happen to me. Yeah. Actually I had the pain for about a week, and then it went away, but now it’s back again. I’m going to be [46](http://www.amiright.com/parody/80s/gunsnroses33.shtml) so occassional aches & [pains](http://www.amiright.com/parody/80s/tearsforfears19.shtml) come with the territory. If I immediately ran to the doctor everytime something hurt a little bit I might as well move in with him. It’s just that this things been lingering a while, and my annual check up is usually in July so I figure I’d go a month early & get this checked out too. I’m just curious before hand as to what it might be! ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/17 "2006-05-31T17:29:44Z")
Do you have ovaries???/ ---
**Author:** ![Malienation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Malienation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malienation)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/18 "2006-05-31T17:32:18Z")
When I had appendicitis, my pain seemed to be where yours is. I was surprised that I had appendicitis until the doctor tested me in the way **picunurse** suggested (push near appendix, let go abruptly…if it’s painful, you have _rebound tenderness_). Unlike many appendicitis attacks, I didn’t have a fever. See a doc, man… ---
**Author:** ![Helix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e19adc/32.png) [@Helix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helix)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2006, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/19 "2006-05-31T18:48:05Z")
Ah, the memories. I had a pain like that years ago (but not so localized), made an appointment, drove down to the doctor’s office, and after about a 4 hours wait got to feeling better. I finally decided to forget the whole thing and I was not alone in this. One month later at 3:30am I decided I should go to the hospital IMMEDIATELY. They did tests for a day or so and then a doctor came in and did the rebound test as described by picnurse. Perforated appendix. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2006, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817/20 "2006-06-01T01:44:57Z")
> [@vetbridge](#): > > Do you have ovaries???/ Yes, I have ovaries & a vagina. I keep them secured inside my wife of almost 26 years. 😛 :rolleyes: Sorry. Couldn’t resist. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-in-abdomen/358817.md?page=2)