Pain In The Right Hypochondrium - Causes Of Dull, Lingering, Sharp, Sharp And Stabbing Pain In The Right Hypochondrium

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 17:49

Pain in the right hypochondrium

Painful sensations are a signal for the body about the occurrence of a pathological condition, illness or injury. For a person, pain has a protective function, since it indicates the need for treatment in time.

Content:

• Causes of pain in the right hypochondrium
• Gynecological aspects of pain in the right hypochondrium
• Pain in the right hypochondrium with acute appendicitis
• Thoracic osteochondrosis and pain in the right hypochondrium
• The onset of pain in the right hypochondrium with myocardial infarction
• Shingles and pain in the right side
• Children's helminthiasis, accompanied by pain in the right hypochondrium

Causes of pain in the right hypochondrium

Anatomically, the upper right quadrant of the abdomen includes: liver, gallbladder, part of the diaphragm and small intestine, duodenum, right kidney, pancreas.

Diseases and injuries of these organs can intensify the onset of pain in the right side under the ribs:

• Violation of the patency of the biliary tract (cholecystitis). A sharp, sharp pain that suddenly began, especially at night, is formed when the patency of the biliary tract is impaired and in acute cholecystitis. In the case of an increase in the tone of the gallbladder, its tendency to contract increases, and the frequency and strength of its contractions also increases. Such processes are accompanied by sharp and short-term pain and are often provoked by nervous tension and stress.
• Pain syndrome in acute cholecystitis is caused by the ingress of stones from the gallbladder into its excretory duct. Gallstone syndrome forms stagnation of bile and inflammation of the bladder. Such biliary colic is characterized by severe pain in the right rib area, which is felt in the same hand, hyperthermia, vomiting and nausea.
• Ulcerative duodenitis of the duodenum. Stitching pain primarily indicates ulcerative duodenitis of the duodenum. The main reason for this pathology is the vital activity of the bacteria Helicobacter Pylori, which destroys the intestinal mucosa. Stitching and even "dagger" pain occurs mainly at night, its intensity decreases after food enters the digestive system. General symptoms are also observed: hyperthermia, bloating, nausea, a feeling of heaviness in the abdomen, general malaise.

• Renal colic. Patients complain of stabbing pain in renal colic. In this case, the pain becomes unbearable and does not change with a change in body position. The pain is caused by the presence of stones in the urinary system, which with sharp edges damage the mucous membrane of the urinary system and cause congestion.
• Pancreatitis Pulsating pain indicates pancreatitis. The exact cause of pancreatic inflammation has not been established. Pathology begins with throbbing, intense, girdle pain. If these symptoms occur, the patient needs immediate hospitalization and urgent surgical treatment. Pronounced pain in the right square of the abdomen is observed during the transition from acute to chronic pancreatitis and is amenable to conservative treatment.

Aching pain in the right side indicates liver disease:

• Aching pain is triggered by liver disease. The vast majority of people with liver diseases go to doctors with the appearance of severe pain, although it is preceded by a slight intensity of aching pain. Each type of viral hepatitis, to one degree or another, proceeds with a feeling of aching pain. The long period of development of viral hepatitis is asymptomatic. The severity of symptoms depends on the activity of the pathogen virus. (General manifestations of the disease: chronic fatigue, decreased performance, systemic disorders with hyperthermia. Local symptoms are a feeling of heaviness and aching pain in the liver, the skin acquires a yellow tint, a change in the transparency of urine. The exact diagnosis is established only by laboratory analysis for markers of hepatitis.)
• Aching pain can also signal liver cirrhosis. Unfortunately, pain in this pathology appears already in the last stages of the disease. In the early stages, there is no pain, although an inflammatory process develops in the liver. Subsequently, it leads to the death of a significant number of hepatocytes. In the liver, instead of dead cells, connective tissue is formed. The body can no longer fulfill its functions. At this time, aching pain occurs in the right abdomen under the ribs.
• Aching pain can also be one of the signs of liver cancer. With a slight pain syndrome in combination with weight loss, chronic fatigue, low-grade fever, an increase in the size of the organ, it is necessary to consult an oncologist surgeon.
• Inflammatory processes.

Dull pain is characteristic of frequently occurring inflammatory processes in the right hypochondrium:

1. Chronic cholecystitis. This is an inflammation of the gallbladder, which proceeds slowly and gradually and passes against the background of gallstone disease. The disease arises from damage to the inner wall of the bladder stones. As a result, the wall thickens and becomes covered with ulcers, which scar over time. Such changes lead to stagnation and deterioration of the outflow of bile. A person with chronic cholecystitis feels mild pain on the right side of the abdomen, vomiting, and bloating. Pain symptoms are especially aggravated after malnutrition, especially fat.
2. Chronic pancreatitis. Chronic inflammation of the pancreas may result from untreated acute pancreatitis or gallstones. With the course of the disease, irreversible changes in the organ take place in the form of replacement of the organ parenchyma with connective tissue. Such processes disrupt the basic functions of the gland, including the production of digestive enzymes and the hormone insulin, which lowers blood sugar levels. Patients suffer from dull pain that occurs under the ribs on the right and left side after eating, a feeling of bloating and heaviness in the abdomen, dyspepsia, nausea and vomiting.
3. Chronic pyelonephritis. This is an inflammatory process in the renal calyx-pelvis system. Pain in chronic unilateral pyelonephritis is often felt on the opposite side of the diseased kidney. The pain increases after exercise. In patients with no apparent reason, the body temperature rises, urination becomes more frequent, and blood pressure rises. Also, patients note chronic fatigue, headaches, deterioration in working capacity.
4. Chronic hepatitis. Half of the cases of acute hepatitis that have not been fully treated become chronic. The symptomatology of this disease is very individual and depends on the state of the functional state of the body and the causes of gastritis. The presence in the patient of aching and pulling pain in the right abdomen under the ribs, attacks of nausea, flatulence and vomiting, impaired appetite, intolerance to fats and alcohol may indicate chronic hepatitis. Physical examination shows a moderate increase in the size of the liver, palpation of which causes dull pain.
5. Chronic duodenitis. Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the duodenum provokes dull pain in the right and upper abdomen, nausea and vomiting with bile, decreased appetite, heartburn and frequent diarrhea. Duodenitis is anatomically interconnected with the pancreas and bile glands, so it often proceeds in parallel with the inflammatory processes in these glands.

Gynecological aspects of pain in the right hypochondrium

1. Ectopic pregnancy. Normally, a fertilized egg moves into the uterine cavity for attachment and development. If this process is disturbed and the egg is fixed in another place, an ectopic pregnancy occurs. Gynecological symptoms: absence of menstruation in combination with bleeding. This pathology is accompanied by a pain syndrome in the form of pulling pains in the right or left half of the abdomen, depending on the place of attachment of the egg. Pain arises from overstretching, and sometimes rupture of the fallopian tube. You should immediately go to the hospital for hospitalization and termination of pregnancy.
2. Acute or chronic adnexitis. Sometimes in women with inflammatory processes of the uterine appendages, pain can be localized in the right or left hypochondrium. In addition, there is hyperthermia, impaired urination, vomiting, purulent discharge from the genitals, nausea, pain in the lower abdomen.
3. Torsion of the ovarian cyst. Such a dangerous condition can only be treated surgically, and the earlier it is diagnosed, the more favorable the treatment result. Symptoms of torsion are: abdominal pain radiating to the hypochondrium, bleeding, high body temperature, general weakness and malaise.

Pain in the right hypochondrium with acute appendicitis

The appendix is a lymphoid organ that is involved in the immune defense of the digestive system. It is located in the region of the right ilium, but its position is quite variable. This makes it difficult to diagnose inflammation of the appendix. Appendicitis has its own distinct developmental stages that only a surgeon can diagnose.

Signs of the disease are:

• Spilled pain in the navel and stomach;
• Pain for three hours is localized in the right half of the abdomen;
• Reduction of pain syndrome when lying on the right side;
• Increased pain when walking and lying on the left side;
• Against the background of pain, general health worsens, body temperature rises, vomiting and diarrhea occur.

In such cases, emergency surgical treatment is carried out in a surgical hospital.

Thoracic osteochondrosis and pain in the right hypochondrium

Degenerative changes in the thoracic spine affect all the internal organs of the abdomen and are difficult to diagnose.

Chest osteochondrosis is accompanied by:

• Pain in both hypochondria and intercostal space;
• Increased pain when inhaling and exhaling, tilting the body of the body, raising the arms.

In this place of the body, on the right side, the back can be very painful precisely because of chest osteochondrosis.

The onset of pain in the right hypochondrium with myocardial infarction

There is a possibility of localization of pain in the right hypochondrium with abdominal myocardial infarction. With this type of infarction (necrosis of a portion of the heart muscle due to the cessation of its blood supply), acute pain occurs in the epigastric and hypochondrium region. The pain becomes unbearable burning and is not relieved by nitroglycerin or other pain relievers.

To avoid death, immediate hospitalization to the cardiology department is indicated.

Shingles and pain in the right side

This viral disease is caused by a virus belonging to the herpesvirus family. The pathological process proceeds along the nerve intercostal endings. At the onset of the disease, with a lesion of the right intercostal region, there is acute pain in the hypochondrium, subfebrile indicators, severe itching.

On the second day, red edematous spots appear, in the place of which bubbles with a transparent liquid form on the 3-4th day. At this time, regional lymph nodes also increase, and the pain syndrome becomes more intense. As a result of the disease, the bubbles burst, in their place are areas of persistent pigmentation. After recovery, some patients may experience postherpetic neuralgia with pain in the hypochondrium, which is difficult to treat.

Children's helminthiasis, accompanied by pain in the right hypochondrium

Helminthiases are usually called a group of human diseases caused by parasitic worms. Pain in the right hypochondrium can be observed at the second stage of development of ascariasis (intestinal).

This phase is characterized by an appetite disorder, nausea, bloating, diarrhea and constipation. Neurological symptoms include hyperexcitability, intellectual impairment, and the development of asthenic symptoms. In rare cases, there is a possibility of ascaris penetration from the intestine through the bile ducts into the liver and gallbladder. Under such circumstances, the child may experience severe pain, as in an attack of acute cholecystitis, gallstone disease, hepatitis.

In conclusion, I would like to note that when the pain described above appears, it is necessary to urgently consult a doctor. This will allow to avoid the development of severe pathologies and timely carry out complex treatment of the disease.

The author of the article: Gorshenina Elena Ivanovna | Gastroenterologist

Education: Diploma in the specialty "General Medicine" received at the Russian State Medical University named after N. I. Pirogova (2005). Postgraduate studies in the specialty "Gastroenterology" - educational and scientific medical center.