Left side pain, abdominal pressure, and decreased appetite

[mambojoe]

Hi. I am a 33 year old, physically fit male who has had pain under my left rib cage on and off since November. The pain is generally from the tip of the rib cage to the soft tissue about an inch/inch and a half away from the lower half of my ribs. When I first went to the doctor, I was told it was muscular and that it would go away. The pain has disappeared and reappeared until recently, when it decided to become a daily ordeal (dull and aching,for about the last two weeks) with a feeling of pressure. On occasion I can feel pain on the exact other side in my back. Additionally, the pressure in my abdominal area has caused an increase in my blood pressure, which has been attributed to muscular discomfort. I have not had any constipation, fever, jaundice, changes in urination, or nausea; only a decreased appetite (I am eating about 1 meal a day and cereal occasionally at night, with no weight loss). I am not the kind of person who normally complains, and would appreciate any thoughts you have. ThankYou.

[Nobunaga73]

I was diagnosed with an enlarged spleen recently -- although my symptoms are not as pronounced as yours, from everything I've read recently what you describe seems to exactly coincide with the symptoms for an enlarged spleen.  Why the spleen is enlarged, though, is another question -- which I am also waiting to discover.  I just had a CT scan performed today.  Like you I am a physically fit male, 34 years old -- only I had almost no prior symptoms (only an occasional slight pain in the upper left abdomen and fullness).  My enlarged spleen was discovered during a routine ultrasound at my yearly check-up.

[sue3708]

I have very similar symptoms.  I also have nausea and lightheadedness.  I have had an upper endoscopy, CT scan and MRI of my abdomen.  All that showed up was mild esophagitis from Reflux.  Still feel pretty lousy, I've lost some weight due to the lack of appetite.  Hope this helps