If there is stitching pain in front, under the left rib, fear of possible heart problems immediately appears. Many begin to suspect the onset of a serious attack. Strong 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 associated sensations, as this will help the doctor prescribe the appropriate treatment.
Discomfort in this area may indicate several ailments. We will deal with the main reasons, among which: incipient gastritis, stomach problems, heart attack, lung diseases, back injuries, rib fracture, pancreatitis, diaphragm disturbance, nervous system dysfunction, pregnancy, excessive gas formation.
Gastric ailments
With gastritis, it is often not only stabbing 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, diarrhea, bloating disappear. This can occur periodically, in this case, a doctor needs to be examined, it is better to prevent than to miss the disease. It can be in acute form.
Chronic gastritis
Most often, symptoms occur within a few hours after taking harmful products, medicines, chemicals. The main reason for gastritis, in which pricks in the left side under the ribs in front, is poor nutrition. The acute form is treated quickly. First you need to empty the stomach. On the first day - only liquid food (kefir, soup), the second - soft food (porridge, jelly), diet for 5 days.
Drug therapy is also used. As a rule, after this, gastritis recedes, but you should always remember about a balanced diet. The chronic form is treated longer. It is not possible to recognize it for a long time, since it may not manifest itself, and after the onset of symptoms disappear, and the stage of remission begins. For treatment, you need a constant diet and gastroprotective agents prescribed by your doctor.
Problems with the cardiovascular system
If pricks under the left rib in front - these may be signs of a heart attack. They are easier to find. When moving, a difficult sigh, propping up pain in the left ventricle of the heart, nausea, vomiting, hiccups, diarrhea, pale swollen face, increased sweating, blue lips. When these signs appear, you need to urgently call a doctor. They don’t joke with a heart attack. When it occurs, you can only help in the first couple of hours, when the resulting blood clot is still easy to dissolve.
Recovery from a heart attack is long. Have to rethink your habits and lifestyle. You will need to take medication constantly. The main groups of people at risk of heart attack are men, women after 50 years of age, smokers, overweight, high blood pressure, and diabetes. In this case, prevention is important, not subsequent treatment. It will last the rest of your life. And prevention is as follows:
- maintain normal blood pressure;
- monitor blood sugar;
- quit smoking;
- reduce excess weight;
- walk more in the fresh air.
Respiratory system
Stitches 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 stitching pain. In the event of a cough, urgently need to contact a doctor for help. This is a district doctor, and pulmonologist, and resuscitator, and 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 pancreatic diseases
It is important to know what is under the left rib in front. The most common cause of stitching pain is pancreatitis, since the final part of the pancreas is located in this area. The main symptoms are: vomiting with bile, bitterness in the mouth, the color of urine is dark, and the stool is light. The pains in acute pancreatitis are strong, sometimes encircling, they cannot be tolerated. If this is a chronic form, then it occurs after dense feasts. She may not show a blood test, it is necessary to conduct an ultrasound, X-ray or MRI of the pancreas.
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, not to abuse alcohol. Pancreatitis can only be determined by a surgeon. It is necessary 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: analgesia (paracetamol) and the use of enzymes. They should always be at hand for those suffering from pancreatitis, they must be taken very often, several times a day.
What's under the rib on the left side in 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, pain can go to the back and become much stronger. It is very important to start treatment on time, and this can be done only after a thorough examination.
Injuries and excessive exercise
Fracture of the ribs from a side impact, the stomach, most likely, will not be missed by anyone, 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, one should not panic, as the diaphragm reacted. In the usual state, most of the blood in a person is in the abdominal and chest cavity, while playing sports, the blood is redistributed to the places of greater muscle work. If we begin to move quickly without warming up, the liver and spleen are overflowing, press on the capsules, and those, in turn, on the nerve receptors, which causes stabbing pain. The main prevention here is rest, breathing exercises, before the start of the run, it is necessary to warm up. It is necessary to engage in physical training no earlier than 1-2 hours after eating, do not drink a lot of water during training.
Abdominal migraine
A cause of pain under the left rib in the front can also be a nervous breakdown. This disease is called abdominal migraine, most often found in children, adolescents, the elderly. Additional symptoms: nausea, cramps in the abdominal muscles. 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, they depend on mild excitability, sensitivity to pain, temperament, relationships in the family. This may be a hereditary tendency, more often in children whose parents suffer from migraine, such about 80%. As a rule, treatment is based on painkillers and periodic visits to a psychologist.
Other reasons
During pregnancy, many women experience stitching pains in the side, this is most often an intestinal displacement due to an ever-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 stitching pain under the left rib in the front may be the usual excessive gas formation. Here you need to remember what products the patient has abused lately and to prevent this ailment in the future.
As you can see, all the causes of stitching pain on the left under the rib require specialist treatment, so do not delay the trip to the doctor. It is better to prevent the disease and spend your time than to treat it for a long time.