Pain in the ribs or under the ribs often forces people to seek help from doctors of various specialties, since it imitates angina pectoris, pleural pain, and the consequences of injury. But often pain in the ribs is a consequence of problems with the spine.
Doctors at the Osteomed Clinic in St. Petersburg very often observe in their practice patients with pain in the ribs or intercostal neuralgia. Along with the pain syndrome, other manifestations are also identified in patients, which require detailed consideration and exclusion of other pathologies. To do this, you need to make an appointment with an experienced specialist and undergo a full examination.
The most likely causes of pain in the right hypochondrium
Pain in the right hypochondrium from the front and back from the back can be associated with the following diseases:
- cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, cholangitis;
- pancreatitis;
- neoplasms of the pancreas, liver and stomach;
- hepatitis, cirrhosis;
- appendicitis;
- gastritis, peptic ulcer;
- pyelonephritis, urolithiasis;
- osteochondrosis of the thoracic and lumbar spine;
- shingles.
If you have pain in the right hypochondrium, it is impossible to make an accurate diagnosis without a doctor’s examination and diagnosis.
Diagnosis of pain in the right hypochondrium
If you often have pain in the right hypochondrium, it is first recommended to perform an ultrasound of the liver and gallbladder. This study allows us to identify signs of the inflammatory process (cholecystitis), cholelithiasis, major diseases of the liver and other organs of the hepatobiliary system. If ultrasound does not detect any abnormalities, it is recommended to examine the pancreas and kidneys.
Additionally, it is necessary to conduct laboratory diagnostics and survey radiography to study the condition of the abdominal organs. CT and MRI may be prescribed. Sometimes pain in the right hypochondrium, especially from the back, is associated with osteochondrosis and its complications (hernia, pinched nerves and blood vessels).
Soreness in joints, muscles, throat
Common sources of discomfort in muscle and joint tissues include the penetration of toxic substances produced by pathogenic microflora. Symptoms appear 3-7 days after infection; during this period, the virus actively multiplies, releasing its metabolic products into a nearby space.
When infected, the body weakens, the immune system is not able to fully protect the body from the activity of pathogens. Against the background of changes, pain in muscles and joints may be present for several weeks.
Painful sensations in the throat area are among the leading clinical signs of an infectious and inflammatory process occurring in the body under the influence of coronavirus. Pathogenic microorganisms penetrate the respiratory tract, actively multiply on the mucous membranes of the bronchi and nasopharynx, leading to local inflammation.
In parallel with pain in the throat area, the patient experiences:
- temperature increase;
- discomfort during swallowing;
- unproductive dry cough, tickling;
- state of general weakness, drowsiness;
- apathy, rapid fatigue.
Uncomfortable sensations do not disappear without eliminating the underlying pathological process. With the advent of recovery, the feeling of a foreign body in the throat and problems with swallowing disappear in patients.
Pain in the right hypochondrium due to gastrointestinal diseases
In most cases, dull pain in the right hypochondrium in front is associated with diseases of the pancreas, stomach, duodenum, liver or gallbladder. Only a doctor can determine the specific affected organ through examination, palpation and diagnostic results. But you can find a presumptive reason due to which discomfort occurs in the right hypochondrium and sharp or dull pain appears.
Acute and chronic cholecystitis
Cholecystitis occurs due to inflammation of the gallbladder. The disease can be chronic, causing periodic exacerbations. With a relapse, there is usually a sharp pain in the right hypochondrium.
Additional symptoms:
- pain appears after overeating, heavy exercise, stress;
- the pain is paroxysmal, localized in the right side of the abdomen, radiating to the collarbone, scapula and shoulder;
- nausea and vomiting with bile appear;
- Possible bloating and increased body temperature.
Cholecystitis most often appears against the background of bile stagnation, which promotes the proliferation of infectious pathogens. They can enter the organ from chronic foci of infection (caries, otitis media, tonsillitis).
In most cases, cholecystitis is associated with cholelithiasis. Stones damage the internal mucous membrane of the organ, causing an inflammatory process. The disease also develops against the background of biliary dyskinesia.
Acute cholecystitis is accompanied by severe pain. Staying home with these symptoms is life-threatening. If you experience severe pain in the right hypochondrium, contact a specialist as soon as possible. With chronic cholecystitis, a dull pain usually appears in the right hypochondrium in front. The pain is moderate and can be easily relieved with standard analgesics.
Most often, pain and heaviness in the right hypochondrium appears after eating, especially when you eat a lot of prohibited foods at once. The most dangerous food for the gallbladder and liver is everything fried and highly fatty. If you remove such dishes from your diet, you can reduce relapses of chronic cholecystitis to a minimum and avoid common complications, including inflammation of the ducts and the formation of stones.
Cholelithiasis
Gallstone disease or cholelithiasis is the main cause of constant dull or acute paroxysmal pain in the right hypochondrium on the side, which can radiate to the back, under the right shoulder blade, neck and shoulder. Sometimes patients with cardiovascular pathologies mistake biliary colic for an angina attack.
Most often, the right hypochondrium hurts in women, since cholelithiasis occurs mainly in the fairer sex. Hormonal imbalances, numerous pregnancies and childbirths, and the use of certain medications, including antibiotics and contraceptives, contribute to the development of the disease.
Additional symptoms:
- nausea and vomiting; fragments of bile are often present in the vomit;
- increased body temperature;
- stool disorders;
- yellowing of the skin.
Errors in nutrition can provoke an attack of acute pain and burning in the right hypochondrium. Gallstone disease requires strict adherence to a diet limited to fatty foods, fried foods, spices and seasonings, and alcohol. Most often, stones are formed when there is a violation of cholesterol metabolism and its high content in bile. Such changes occur during stagnant processes. High cholesterol content makes bile thick (lithogenic).
Important! If stones are present for a long time, the functionality of the gallbladder is impaired, the risk of chronic inflammation, blockage of ducts and the development of dangerous emergency conditions increases.
Cholangitis
Cholangitis occurs due to inflammation of the bile ducts. The disease is often bacterial in nature. The infection enters the mucous membrane of the ducts from nearby organs or through the portal vein. Cholangitis most often occurs against the background of cholecystitis and cholelithiasis. Predisposing factors to the appearance of the inflammatory process are biliary dyskinesia and constant stagnation of bile.
The main symptoms of cholangitis:
- temperature increase;
- severe pain in the right hypochondrium, which spreads to the area of the shoulder blade, shoulder and neck;
- physical weakness;
- yellowing of the skin.
With chronic cholangitis, aching pain periodically appears in the right hypochondrium in front. The state of health may be satisfactory. Aching pain in the right hypochondrium is combined with a feeling of fullness in the stomach. You should be alert to symptoms such as weakness and fatigue, especially if they occur with discomfort in the stomach and gallbladder projection.
Pancreatitis
With pancreatitis, the pancreas becomes inflamed. The cause of inflammation is damage to organ cells by activated enzymes, which under normal conditions become active only in the digestive tract. As a result of pancreatitis, the mucous membrane of the organ becomes inflamed and swollen, and blood vessels are damaged.
With pancreatitis, the pain is girdling, which is more in the stomach area, more under the left hypochondrium, and partially passes to the right hypochondrium. The pain radiates to the left shoulder blade and back. The inflammatory process can be triggered by gross dietary violations, when a person drinks alcohol, large amounts of fatty and spicy foods. Relapses of pancreatitis often occur due to improper exit from therapeutic fasting and fasting.
Additional symptoms:
- pain increases in a horizontal position, especially if you lie on your back;
- vomiting and nausea;
- deterioration in general health;
- yellowing of the sclera;
- temperature increase.
In an acute attack of pancreatitis, severe bloating appears in the abdomen, the formation of purple spots on the skin, and small hemorrhages on the abdomen are possible.
Acute and chronic pyelonephritis
With an infectious-inflammatory process that affects the kidneys, severe pain appears in the lumbar region. They can radiate to the right or left side, to the genitals. The pain syndrome is usually one-sided. In an uncomplicated form of pyelonephritis, urination is usually preserved, but the urine becomes cloudy and may turn red due to blood.
Chronic pyelonephritis is accompanied by frequent urination, decreased performance and weakness. Dull aching pain in the lower back usually appears after hypothermia or prolonged stagnation of urine.
Headache
There are different types of cephalgia during coronavirus infection:
- pulsating;
- acute;
- penetrating;
- aching;
- stupid;
- pressing or distant.
Problem areas are located in the back of the head, temples, forehead, and sometimes extend to the back of the neck. The intensity, nature and localization of unpleasant sensations helps specialists make the correct diagnosis. The causes of headaches are related to the location of the problem area:
- vascular - associated with a sharp narrowing of blood vessels, slow blood circulation and insufficient oxygen supply;
- muscular – formed against the background of inflammatory processes or overstrain;
- mixed - arise under the simultaneous influence of several factors.
With a congenital predisposition to migraines, some patients experience attacks of pathology. As a result, the infected person suffers from a one-sided headache; in parallel, he experiences various disorders: visual, auditory, and gastrointestinal.
Coronavirus can become a source of not only cephalgia, but also accompanying attacks of nausea, chills, and fever. Patients experience a feeling of insufficient air intake and increased sweating.
What to do for pain in the right hypochondrium
Pain in the right hypochondrium, even minor, is an alarming signal. It may primarily indicate various diseases of the liver, gallbladder and pancreas, which can lead to dangerous complications, including rupture of the internal walls.
If you consult a doctor immediately when pain occurs, you can avoid adverse health consequences. The specialist will conduct a comprehensive diagnosis and, based on the examination data, will decide what treatment can be used in your particular case.
Treatment for pain in the right hypochondrium
Treatment for pain in the right hypochondrium is selected by the doctor, focusing primarily on the diagnosis. If the pain syndrome is associated with cholelithiasis, pancreatitis or other diseases of the digestive tract, the specialist must prescribe a strict diet. It is necessary to avoid fatty and fried foods, any foods and drinks that can irritate the gastrointestinal mucosa and negatively affect the formation and secretion of bile.
Treatment for cholecystitis and cholelithiasis
With cholecystitis and cholelithiasis, the function of the gallbladder is impaired. Medicines are prescribed depending on the presence or absence of stones and the severity of the inflammatory process. To suppress the infection, broad-spectrum antibiotics must be used.
Diet is a major part of comprehensive treatment. Additionally, specialists can prescribe painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs, and drugs that ensure the outflow of bile. In the presence of stones, treatment is predominantly surgical. Removal of the gallbladder through laparoscopic access does not cause excessive blood loss and can significantly reduce the rehabilitation period. Conservative therapy for gallstones is usually ineffective. Even if it is possible to dissolve or destroy the stones, they will form words within several months.
Treatment for cholangitis
Treatment of cholangitis can be conservative and surgical. To eliminate severe pain in the right hypochondrium, specialists prescribe painkillers and free the bile ducts from stones. Antibiotics suppress the infectious process. If parasites are detected, antiparasitic drugs must be used. Physiotherapy is recommended only after pain and the main symptoms of the disease have been eliminated. You can use electrophoresis, UHF.
Treatment for pancreatitis
An acute attack of pancreatitis requires emergency care. Specialists prescribe antispasmodics and use novocaine blockade. Dry ice is applied to the pancreas projection area. Eating is prohibited for several days, while parenteral nutrition is maintained (through a vein). Therapeutic drugs used include antacids, deactivators of gland enzymes, and hemostasis is corrected with the help of droppers and the administration of protein and saline solutions. Antibiotics must be prescribed to prevent complications.
Treatment for pyelonephritis
For pyelonephritis, antibiotics are prescribed taking into account the sensitivity of the bacteria, which the doctor detects based on the results of laboratory tests. Be sure to detoxify. Treatment of severe pyelonephritis takes place in a hospital. Additionally, painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed.
We invite you to watch a video where experts tell you what is in the right hypochondrium and why pain may occur in this area.
You may find the following articles useful: Diet for cholecystitis Symptoms of biliary colic. How to relieve pain Using choleretic drugs for bile stagnation Inflammation of the gallbladder. Symptoms and principles of treatment
Discomfort in the abdomen
Soreness occurs against the background of severe nervous shock, which is not something special in the midst of a pandemic. During a diagnostic examination of an infected person, no pathological processes in the gastrointestinal, urinary, or liver are detected. Therapy for neurogenic type disorders is carried out not with painkillers, but with sedatives along with antidepressants.
Pain in the abdominal area occurs in response to indigestion, which occurs with coronavirus in weakened patients and children. Formed pneumonia leads to oxygen starvation at the cellular level, and toxins produced by pathogens lead to symptoms of intoxication.
Those infected experience:
- attacks of nausea with vomiting;
- lack of appetite;
- frequent bowel movements.
Frequent urge to go to the toilet and pain may be associated with spasm of the muscular walls of the intestines. The stool becomes watery, mixed with mucus and pieces of undigested food.
