Very Sharp Pain After Eating

by Patrick
(Woodbury, MN, US)

I am a 22 year old male, 6 feet tall, 185 lbs, average build.

I am having a lot of pain in my upper central stomach, right below the center of my ribs.
It has been occurring every night after eating for the last week or so.
The pain is moderate to severe and feels like a sharp pain.
The pain is very localized and does not spread.
My last semester of college just started so I have been pretty stressed lately.
There is no vomiting or change in bowel habit.
The first 2 or 3 days I was having Diarrhea every other stool.
I have gained some weight over the holiday season but nothing out of the ordinary.
I was diagnosed with a hiatus Hernia about 5 years ago and I was prescribed to omeperazol. It went away after a few months of treatment and making sure I was not eating before going to bed.
I also have had relatively frequent (5-10 times a month) heart burn in the last year and I have been treating it with tums, which works well.

I do not know if I should go into the doctor or not. The pain seems to be getting worse and worse every day. It comes on immediately after I eat dinner or any other large meal. I also do not feel very well. I have malaise and headaches when the pain comes on. Pepto Bismol seems to help a little bit but not for very long.

I appreciate any advice or help,

Thank you,

Patrick




Hi Patrick,

Thank you for contacting us. Are you medically trained? The precision with which you use medical
terminology is truly amazing!

What you've described is almost certainly due to irritation of the wall of your stomach or duodenum. It is what doctors would refer to as dyspepsia.

Hiatus hernia, gastritis, Helicobacter pylori infection, stomach ulcer, duodenal ulcer and GERD are all related conditions; thought to be different degree of severity in a continuum of the spectrum of the same condition (but for hiatus hernia and duodenal ulcer), can all manifest with those symptoms you have described above. I hope I made some sense here.

Other conditions that can cause very sharp upper abdominal pain after eating include gallstones and pancreatitis, though it is unlikely that any of the last two conditions are the cause of your pain.

I would certainly agree with you that it is best to see your doctor.

You will need to be asked further questions like what the color of your stool is, and your alcohol and smoking history, have some blood test done perhaps, if thought to be necessary, H. pylori testing, and maybe endoscopy to make a definite diagnosis of your condition.

If it is due to H.pylori infection, it is curable with the use of a combination of antibiotics for about 1 to 2 weeks.

You may need to go back on Omeprazole or Lansoprazole. You may wish to continue with the Pepto Bismol you are taking.

Hopefully a cure would be achieved for your symptoms and you will be free of this nagging very sharp pain in you upper abdomen that occurs after eating.

Please keep us informed on what happened after seeing your doctor.

Kindest Regards, and Good Health To You!


Dr O Edema
Abdopain.com

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