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Occasional pain in upper abdomen
Hello, I am a 28 year old male, overweight (5' 10' and 210 lbs.) , have high blood pressure, non smoker, very rarely drink alcohol. I was a huge caffeine addict, but I quit that cold turkey just days before all this started.
Over the last month I have had a strange list of incidents I have never experienced. It started out with gagging in the morning before I ate. That went away.
Then I had a cough, which also went away. Then I got acid reflux, which I always got a worse case of while at work (I am a machinist, so therefore do a lot of lifting, bending, stooping, etc.). It would make me have to clear my throat a lot.
After a good week and a half of reflux every day, I went to the doctor and he didn't seem very concerned about it. He said because I recently gave up caffeine, my reflux could be related to that. He also suggested I do the 14 day treatment of Prilosec OTC and see how I fare after that.
My throat cleared up on the medication, but a few days into the treatment I started to feel a low, dull ache in my ribs just under my left breast. The pain could also be crampy. It would come and go, and sometimes radiate to my right side in the same location. It was also exacerbated at work.
I finished the 14 day treatment, and have yet to have reflux, but the pain in my ribs has went from dull and low to a mild burning sensation. I also belch a lot. I get gas pains in my lower abdomen, but that is nothing new to me since I believe myself to have IBS.
I have no loss of appetite, no bloody/tarry stools, no nausea/vomiting. Eating does seem to make the pain go away. I have had some weight loss, but I chalked that up to a recent change in diet (less fast foods, more vegetable and fruit, lower sodium intake, more grains).
My stomach also makes loud gurgling noises from time to time. They usually are the worst at night. This is very depressing to me, as I wonder if there is something seriously wrong with me. Does this sound like something to be concerned about?
Over the last month I have had a strange list of incidents I have never experienced. It started out with gagging in the morning before I ate. That went away.
Then I had a cough, which also went away. Then I got acid reflux, which I always got a worse case of while at work (I am a machinist, so therefore do a lot of lifting, bending, stooping, etc.). It would make me have to clear my throat a lot.
After a good week and a half of reflux every day, I went to the doctor and he didn't seem very concerned about it. He said because I recently gave up caffeine, my reflux could be related to that. He also suggested I do the 14 day treatment of Prilosec OTC and see how I fare after that.
My throat cleared up on the medication, but a few days into the treatment I started to feel a low, dull ache in my ribs just under my left breast. The pain could also be crampy. It would come and go, and sometimes radiate to my right side in the same location. It was also exacerbated at work.
I finished the 14 day treatment, and have yet to have reflux, but the pain in my ribs has went from dull and low to a mild burning sensation. I also belch a lot. I get gas pains in my lower abdomen, but that is nothing new to me since I believe myself to have IBS.
I have no loss of appetite, no bloody/tarry stools, no nausea/vomiting. Eating does seem to make the pain go away. I have had some weight loss, but I chalked that up to a recent change in diet (less fast foods, more vegetable and fruit, lower sodium intake, more grains).
My stomach also makes loud gurgling noises from time to time. They usually are the worst at night. This is very depressing to me, as I wonder if there is something seriously wrong with me. Does this sound like something to be concerned about?
Best Answer
I have the exact same condition, it started about two years ago and comes and go's, I too have been on prilosec 20's, I have the same symptom of bloating, I also have a thyroid disease, which I think is resposible for this condition, the pain comes from just below the left rib cage about 4-5 inches from the center, from looking at anatomy pics, it seems to come from the very top of the stomach, and when I eat a little too much or drink a lot of water, it seems to trigger the ache. I went to a Gastroenterologist, who did an Endoscopy, he found out I had H-Pylori bacteria, he treated me with strong anti-biotcs for ten days, the H-pylori symptoms went away, but I still had the pain on and off like yours, so after moving to a different state, I went to another Gastro, had another Endoscopy and no more H-Pylori, he said there was nothing wrong with my stomach, I wanted to whack thios guy, because I know something is causing this pain to come and go. I then went to Las Vegas and had a special test called an Endoscopic Ultra Sound, they said my stomach was fine, but my pancreas was a little enlarged, so they recomended I have an MRI of my Pancreas, I had that done last May, and nothing! So, I still have the ache, but have lost much respect of the medical profession. The one Gastro told me that he thought it might be caused by arthritus in the cartelege the supports the stomach, and when after eating, the extra weight on the stomach causes strain on the carteledge agravating the arthritus, The only thing about that statement that has any merit is the fact that when it comes on, it is always two or three hours after a meal. If you have Acid reflux trhat can be caused by medications, like blood pressure meds, they relax the muscle that separates the esohpagus from the stomach, allowing acid fumes to creep up the esophagus, causing burns in the tissue, and chest pain. The other thing I have noticed with the rib pain, is that fiber supplements and high fiber foods seem to aggravate it in my case. If you ever find the cause, let me know, and I will do the same for you. I am lost as to the cause of this, and fed up with MD's. Good Luck Frank Bryant
Just an update...been having the rib pain in the left upper abdomen again (still taking vicodin after wisdom tooth removal, so I know that wasn't it). I've noticed it becomes worse when I have a very full stomach.
It's still a very tolerable pain. Sometimes it even feels like a runners "side stitich" but is way more of a discomfort that an actual "ouch". My burping while eating/after drinking seems to have decreased though. Luckily, still no recurrence of acd reflux. The prilosec must have did it's job!
It's still a very tolerable pain. Sometimes it even feels like a runners "side stitich" but is way more of a discomfort that an actual "ouch". My burping while eating/after drinking seems to have decreased though. Luckily, still no recurrence of acd reflux. The prilosec must have did it's job!
Glad to hear someone else has been dealing with something similar. I hope to find an answer to this dilemma soon. I have an appointment with my family doctor early May for a physical, so I plan on bringing the pain up to her at that time. Hopefully she can help me out.
An odd related bit of info on this: I had to have my wisdom teeth out yesterday and ever since then, no rib pain. I understand it could be from the vicodin, but even when I go for long periods of time without the vicodin (like after 8 hours of sleep), I still have not had the rib pain.
I sometimes wonder if the pain is work related from all the heavy lifting I do consistently every day, like muscle strains since it's felt on both sides. That would be ideal, since I really don't want any GI problems at such a young age (or any age for that matter, but I know that's pretty much unavoidable).
Anyway, back on subject, when I go to my doctor in May, and IF I get any answers, I will let you know. This is an annoying problem and it would be great to get rid of it.
An odd related bit of info on this: I had to have my wisdom teeth out yesterday and ever since then, no rib pain. I understand it could be from the vicodin, but even when I go for long periods of time without the vicodin (like after 8 hours of sleep), I still have not had the rib pain.
I sometimes wonder if the pain is work related from all the heavy lifting I do consistently every day, like muscle strains since it's felt on both sides. That would be ideal, since I really don't want any GI problems at such a young age (or any age for that matter, but I know that's pretty much unavoidable).
Anyway, back on subject, when I go to my doctor in May, and IF I get any answers, I will let you know. This is an annoying problem and it would be great to get rid of it.
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