When there are stabbing pains in front under the left rib, fear of possible heart problems immediately appears. Many begin to suspect the onset of a serious attack. Severe and unreasonable panic can provoke the appearance of other symptoms that make it difficult to make a correct diagnosis. It is important to remain calm and remember the sensations as this will help your doctor prescribe the right treatment.
Discomfort in this area may indicate several ailments. We will deal with the main causes, including: incipient gastritis, stomach problems, heart attack, lung disease, back injuries, broken ribs, pancreatitis, diaphragmatic dysfunction, nervous system dysfunction, pregnancy, excessive gas formation.
Stomach ailments
With gastritis, often not only stabs in the left side under the ribs in front. Discomfort is also accompanied by nausea, vomiting, lack of appetite,diarrhea, dizziness. With these symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor. At the initial stage of gastritis, pain can be tolerable, belching appears, appetite disappears, diarrhea, and bloating. This can occur periodically, in this case, you need to be examined by a doctor, it is better to prevent than to miss the disease. It can also be acute.
Chronic gastritis
Most often, symptoms occur within a few hours after taking harmful foods, medicines, chemicals. The main cause of gastritis, in which it pricks in the left side under the ribs in front, is malnutrition. The acute form is treated quickly. First you need to clear the stomach. On the first day - only liquid food (kefir, soup), the second - soft food (porridge, kissel), diet for 5 days.
Medical therapy is also used. As a rule, after this gastritis recedes, but you should always remember about rational nutrition. The chronic form takes longer to heal. It is not possible to recognize it for a long time, since it may not manifest itself, and after the onset of symptoms it disappears, and the stage of remission begins. For treatment, you need a constant diet and gastroprotective drugs prescribed by a doctor.
Problems with the cardiovascular system
If you stab under the left rib in front - these may be signs of a heart attack. They are easier to find. Difficulty breathing when moving, supporting pain in the left ventricle of the heart, nausea, vomiting, hiccups, diarrhea, pale swollen face, increased sweating, blue lips. If these signs appear, you should immediately calldoctor. Heart attacks are no joke. When it occurs, you can help only in the first couple of hours, when the formed blood clot is still easy to dissolve.
Recovery after a heart attack is long. You will have to rethink your habits and lifestyle. You will need to take medication constantly. The main groups of people at risk of a heart attack are men, women over 50, smokers, overweight, with high blood pressure, and diabetics. In this case, prevention is important, not subsequent treatment. It will last for the rest of your life. And prevention is as follows:
- maintain normal blood pressure;
- monitor blood sugar levels;
- quit smoking;
- reduce excess weight;
- go outside more.
Respiratory system
Pricks under the left rib in front and with problems with the lungs: collapse, hypertension, pneumonia. The second disease is difficult to diagnose, like the first, the main symptom is shortness of breath and stabbing pain. In the event of a cough, you should immediately seek medical help. This is a district doctor, a pulmonologist, an intensive care specialist, and a cardiac surgeon. Diagnosis should be comprehensive, since the disease is difficult to detect at an early stage. The cause of the cough may be a harmless virus. Signs of pneumonia: fever, chills, cough with sputum, fatigue. If the disease is diagnosed in time, then it is treated in 10-14 days. Mostly antibiotics are used.
Pancreatitis and other diseases of the pancreas
It is important to know what is under the left rib in front. The most common cause of stabbing pain is pancreatitis, since the final part of the pancreas is located in this area. The main signs are: vomiting with bile, bitterness in the mouth, dark urine color, light stool. Pain in acute pancreatitis is severe, sometimes girdle, and cannot be tolerated. If this is a chronic form, then it occurs after dense feasts. It may not be shown by a blood test, an ultrasound, x-ray or MRI of the pancreas should be performed.
When stabbing under the left rib in front due to pancreatitis, the main recommendation is to carefully monitor your diet. It is important not to overeat, not to lean on fatty and fried foods, not to abuse alcohol. Only a surgeon can determine pancreatitis. It is imperative to diagnose it, since signs of a chronic form can also be pancreatic cancer. The most important thing in pancreatitis is to remove its causes, diet. The main methods of treatment are pain relief (paracetamol) and the use of enzymes. They should always be on hand for those suffering from pancreatitis, they need to be taken very often, several times a day.
What's under the rib on the left side of the front? If, in addition to the symptoms of gastritis, there is also an increase in body temperature, then this is inflammation of the pancreas. Over time, the pain can move to the back and become much stronger. Here it is very important to start treatment on time, and this can be done only after carefulsurvey.
Injuries and overexertion
Fracture of the ribs from a blow to the side, the stomach, most likely, no one will miss, but this is also the reason why it hurts under the ribs on the left side in front. Of course, an appeal to a surgeon is necessary here, otherwise internal organs may be damaged.
Sometimes stabs under the left rib in front when playing sports, physical activity. In these cases, you should not panic, this is how the diaphragm reacted. In the normal state, most of the blood in a person is in the abdominal and chest cavities; when playing sports, the blood is redistributed to the places where the muscles work more. If we begin to move quickly without a warm-up, the liver and spleen overflow, press on the capsules, and those, in turn, on the nerve receptors, which is why there is a stabbing pain. The main prevention here is rest, breathing exercises, it is necessary to warm up before starting the run. You need to do physical training no earlier than 1-2 hours after eating, do not drink a lot of water during training.
Abdominal migraine
The cause of pain under the left rib in front can also be a nervous breakdown. This disease is called abdominal migraine, most often occurs in children, adolescents, and the elderly. Additional symptoms: nausea, abdominal muscle cramps. The pain is paroxysmal, lasts up to 72 hours and manifests itself more in the central part of the abdomen. Children suffer more often, the reasons are not exactly established, and depend on mildexcitability, sensitivity to pain, temperament, family relationships. This may be a hereditary tendency, more often in children whose parents suffer from migraine, those are about 80%. Typically, treatment is based on pain medication and periodic visits to a psychologist.
Other reasons
During pregnancy, many women experience stabbing pains in the side, this is most often the displacement of the intestine due to the constantly growing fetus. In this case, constipation may occur. It is better not to take laxatives, but to adjust your diet, on the recommendation of a doctor.
The cause of stabbing pain under the left rib in front may be the usual excessive gas formation. Here you need to remember what products the patient has been abusing recently and prevent this disease in the future.
As you can see, all causes of stabbing pain on the left side under the ribs require a visit to a specialist, so do not delay going to the doctor. It is better to prevent the disease and spend your time than to treat it for a long time.
