Questions for diagnosing Abdominal Pain

Posted by sanjay on Tuesday 21 Apr 2009

In order to correctly assess your abdominal pain symptoms, your doctor may perform a physical exam, medical tests, and other various techniques. He or she will conduct an important consultation with you before determining the correct diagnosis and you will need to prepare yourself to answer some of these questions:

Questions concerning your pain

When did your pain begin? How frequently does your pain occur? Where do you feel the pain? Is the pain localized or does it radiate to other areas? Does anything you do make the pain worse or better? Can you describe the pain? Have you ever experienced this type of pain before? How long has the pain been present? Is the pain consistent? Is the pain worse after or before eating meals?

Personal questions

Do you drink alcohol and how much do you drink? Do you use any type of narcotics? Have you used drugs intravenously? What is your sexual history? Have you had unprotected sex?

Questions concerning prior conditions

What surgeries have you had recently? Have you ever had “spleen” problems? Have you ever been diagnosed with gallstones? Have you ever been diagnosed with gastric, duodenal, or peptic ulcers? Have you ever been diagnosed with high cholesterol or blood lipids? Have you ever had kidney stones? Do you take any prescription or over-the-counter medications and for what condition?

Questions pertaining to family history

Has anyone in your family been ill recently? Do you have a family history of bowel cancer or inflammatory bowel disease? Do you have a family history of any type of cancer? Do you have a family history of heart attacks or strokes? Is anyone in your family diabetic? Has anyone in your family been diagnosed with high blood pressure?

Questions for females

When was your most recent menstrual period? Could you be pregnant? Are you menopausal? Do you take any form of birth control? Have you had unprotected sex? Have you ever given birth?

General questions

What medications do you take? Have you traveled overseas lately? Have your bowel habits changed? Have you noticed blood in your stools? Are your stools black? Is your abdomen swollen? Have you been injured recently? Have you run a fever lately? Do you shake or shiver uncontrollably? Are your immunizations current and up-to-date? Have you noticed any recent weight gain or weight loss? Have you experienced nausea or vomiting?

Your doctor will ask some or all of these questions so it is vital for you to realize that your consultation is a 2-way process. Any helpful information you can provide will assist your doctor with making the correct diagnosis.