digestive disorders
Abdominal Abscesses
Symptoms of Abdominal Abscesses
Specific symptoms of abdominal abscesses depend on the location of the abscess, but most people have constant discomfort or pain, feel generally sick (malaise), and often have a fever. Other symptoms include nausea, loss of appetite, and weight loss. Anabscess below the diaphragmmay form when infected fluid, for example, from a ruptured appendix, is moved upward by the pressure of abdominal organs and by the suction created when the diaphragm moves during breathing. Symptoms may include a cough, painful breathing, chest pain, and pain in one shoulder. In this instance, the pain felt in one shoulder is an example of referred pain (pain felt in one area of the body that does not accurately represent where the problem is). Referred pain occurs because the shoulder and the diaphragm share the same nerves, and the brain incorrectly interprets the source of the pain (see figure). may result from a ruptured appendix, a ruptured intestine, Overview of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) , An abscess in the lower abdomenmay track down into the thigh or the area around the rectum (called the perirectal fossa). Pelvic abscessescan result from the same disorders that cause abscesses in the mid-abdomen or from gynecologic infections. Symptoms may include abdominal pain, diarrhea caused by intestinal irritation, and an urgent or frequent need to urinate caused by bladder irritation. (called retroperitoneal abscesses) lie behind the peritoneum, the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity and organs. The causes, which are similar to those of abscesses in the abdomen, include inflammation and infection of the appendix ( Appendicitis ), the pancreas ( although rare, typically form after an attack of Acute Pancreatitis . Symptoms such as fever, abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting often begin a week or more after a person recovers from pancreatitis. may be caused by bacteria or by amebas (single-celled, microscopic parasites). Bacteria can reach the liver from an infected gallbladder, a penetrating or blunt wound, an infection in the abdomen (such as a nearby abscess), or an infection carried by the bloodstream from elsewhere in the body. Amebiasis from an intestinal infection reach the liver through the blood vessels. Symptoms of liver abscesses include loss of appetite, nausea, and a fever. A person may or may not have abdominal pain. Abscesses in the spleenare caused by an infection traveling through the bloodstream to the spleen, by an injury to the spleen, or by the spread of an infection from a nearby abscess, such as one below the diaphragm. Pain may occur in the left side of the abdomen, the back, or the left shoulder. 