Abstract

Objective. Acute abdominal pain is the most common complaint to visit the emergency room. It can be caused by a wide range of underlying surgical and non-surgical conditions. These patients need a quick assessment because of the probability of conducting surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency distribution of acute abdominal pain reason and its relation to age, underlying disease and sex. Methods. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 352 patients with acute abdominal pain in Shahid Sadoughi hospital. Data were extracted from medical records. Diagnosis of disease was performed by a physician. Results. The most common underlying disease in patients with acute abdominal pain was hypertension (14.8) and diabetes mellitus (10.8(. The most common cause of disease was related to abdominal pain without any cause (32.2), intestinal obstruction (14.8), appendicitis (13.1), cholecystitis (11.1) and lead poisoning (4). The most frequent symptoms in these patients were nausea (49.7), vomiting (48.6(, persistent pain (61.6( and reduced appetite (49.7). There was a significant difference between the frequency distribution of acute abdominal pain causes in terms of age, sex, job and marital status (p<0.05). Conclusion. The most common cause of acute abdominal pain was related to intestinal obstruction, appendicitis and cholecystitis. The prevalence of appendicitis and intestinal obstruction was higher in young and old patients, respectively. Moreover, cholecystitis and intestinal obstruction were more common M © 2019, Serbian Medical Society. All rights reserved.