Severe abdominal pain

Pain involves an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience of varying intensity associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Special receptors become irritated at the site of tissue damage, creating a nerve impulse that transmits through sensory nerves to the brain, where the brain perceives it as pain. The sensation of pain follows with a negative emotional response, accompanied by fear, agitation, or depression—suffering. If pain persists for a long time, a person’s behavior changes: they talk about pain, worry, constantly visit doctors or pharmacists, seek relief, and their posture and facial expression change. Any tissue damage—mechanical, thermal, chemical, or inflammatory—can cause pain. Acute pain starts suddenly and lasts no longer than 1 month. Pain lasting longer than 6 months is considered chronic. If pain lasts longer than 1 month but does not exceed half a year, it is considered subacute.

Source | Author Doctor Nikas Samuolis, reviewed by Prof. Virginijus Šapoka | Vilnius University | Faculty of Medicine | Head of the Department of Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, and Oncology