Acute abdominal pain is when there is sudden pain about the stomach region that gets worse rather quickly but only lasts a relatively short time (usually under three days). The abdominal area of the body is found between the hips and the chest, and contains those organs that are responsible for digestion, i.e. the bowel, the stomach, the liver, the pancreas, the gallbladder and the spleen.

There are different kinds of acute abdominal pain. These include visceral pain, which is the pain felt if the internal organs are swollen or damaged and can be described as a burning or “crampy” pain that can build slowly and is usually felt in the middle of the stomach.

Parietal pain is the pain felt after an injury, the result of which can mean contents like pus, urine or bile leaking into the abdomen and hurting the lining. The pain associated with this is quite sharp and can start all of a sudden, with the patient knowing exactly where it’s found in the abdomen area.

Referred pain can be due to a damaged or pressed on nerve and is actually felt in another area of the body, away from the cause.

Although in a few cases acute abdominal pain has no obvious cause, there are times when one of the subsequent conditions could be to blame: a bowel blockage, inflammation of an abdominal organ, kidney stones, or a blood disease of some sort.

Acute Abdominal Pain

Cholesterol is a lipid, or fat, of the body, and it is this along with another lipid called triglyceride that are vital building blocks of a cell. They are also used in the production of hormones as well as producing energy. Cholesterol is mainly produced in the liver, but it can also be ingested with certain foods.

There are two types of cholesterol and just to keep things simple, these can be classed as the good sort (high-density lipoprotein or HDL) and the bad sort (low-density lipoprotein or LDL). The HDL is effective in reducing cholesterol by transporting it back to the liver from where it is eliminated, whereas the LDL can contribute to certain diseases associated with the heart or blood circulation. HDL levels can be raised through exercise and LDL lowered by eating less saturated fat or sometimes with the aid of medication.

Cholesterol levels can be hereditary as well as being influenced by which part of the world the sufferer lives in. Northern Europeans have higher levels than their Southern counterparts, for example, and a much higher level than Asian people.

High Cholesterol

There are no symptoms of having high cholesterol and it is only one factor of many that can contribute to hardening of the arteries. Other factors include smoking, diet, alcohol intake, exercise and body weight. If going on a cholesterol lowering diet doesn’t help to reduce the levels, then medication will be required to assist the process.

The testicles are found within the scrotum which is a loose sac of skin hanging down behind the penis.  The function of the testicles is to produce sperm and the male sex hormone testosterone.  Most of the time any lumps or swelling within the testicles are benign but it is natural for people to worry when they have found a lump.

Testicular torsion results in swelling of the testicles if the testicle has become twisted.  This interrupts blood flow and causes a large tender distension.  It often happens in developing boys who are experiencing puberty but has also been know to happen in men in their 20’s although it is quite rare.  Testicular torsion is a medical emergency due to the fact that it needs to be rectified by surgery within 6 hours or there is a risk that the testicle will be lost.

Symptoms of testicular torsion include nausea; vomiting; swelling of the scrotum; fever; abdominal pain; the need to urinate often; and, excruciating pain in one testicle.  The cause of testicular torsion results from a spermatic cord that is too long.  The spermatic cord is where the testicles hang from and in some boys this cord is too long leading to increased movement of the testicle which means the cord becoming twisted.  If it twists too much it will cut off the blood supply and the testicle will die.  Testicular torsion can sometimes just happen for no reason at all or it can be the result of strenuous exercise or other physical activity.

An ultrasound scan can be done to confirm suspicion of testicular torsion. Surgery needs to take place almost immediately to save the testicle.  The surgeon will have to cut the scrotum and untwist the cord.  He will then sew the cord to the scrotum to prevent this happening again.

Testicular Torsion