The Non-surgical Acute Abdomen

Abstract

Acute abdominal pain is a common reason for attendance at an emergency service. Although various surgical diagnoses apply in the majority, at least one-third of patients have a final diagnosis of a non-surgical disorder such as irritable bowel syndrome or sphincter of Oddi dysfunction. The differential diagnosis may also need to include inflammatory disorders that do not require surgery and abdominal pain as a manifestation of an extra-intestinal disorder [myocardial infarction] or a more generalized metabolic disorder [diabetic ketoacidosis, acute intermittent porphyria]. The differential diagnosis is also influenced by age with different frequencies of non-surgical disorders in infants, children, teenagers and the elderly.