Pain on your right side, between your chest and groin, is a common experience. While often harmless and indicative of gas or indigestion, persistent or severe pain can signal a more serious underlying issue. Understanding the potential causes of right side abdominal pain is crucial for recognizing when medical attention is needed.
Potential Causes of Right Side Pain
Right side abdominal pain occurs when nerves in your organs send pain signals to the brain. Numerous conditions, ranging from minor digestive issues to serious diseases, can trigger this pain.
Digestive Issues
- Gas: A buildup of intestinal gas is a frequent cause of right side discomfort. Symptoms often include bloating, a feeling of fullness, and abdominal swelling. Gas can result from various factors like constipation, swallowing air while eating, celiac disease, or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). :max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-1174492390-e1f9619bf03248e799320d242e6315a0.jpg)
- Indigestion (Dyspepsia): Indigestion can cause right side pain accompanied by burning in the chest, burping, gas, and nausea. It’s often linked to lifestyle habits like excessive alcohol, coffee, or carbonated beverage consumption, eating rapidly, or smoking. Gastrointestinal conditions such as gastritis or acid reflux can also contribute to indigestion.
Serious Medical Conditions
- Appendicitis: Inflammation of the appendix can cause blockages in the digestive system. Pain typically starts around the belly button, becoming sharper and migrating to the lower right abdomen. Other symptoms include loss of appetite, fever, nausea, and vomiting.
- Kidney Infection (Pyelonephritis): This urinary tract infection (UTI) spreads from the bladder to the kidneys, causing right side abdominal pain, fever, chills, and painful urination.
- Kidney Stones (Nephrolithiasis): Kidney stones are hard, crystallized formations in the kidneys. While some pass unnoticed, others obstruct urine flow, causing pain in the back or right side. Additional symptoms include fever, bloody or cloudy urine, and burning during urination.
- Gallstones: Hardened material forming in the gallbladder can lead to a gallbladder attack (biliary colic), characterized by intense upper right abdominal pain, often after eating or in the evening. Jaundice, light-colored stools, nausea, and vomiting may also occur.
- Hernia: A hernia occurs when organs push through weak spots in surrounding tissue or muscle. Abdominal hernias can cause pain, fullness, bulging, swelling, and constipation.
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS): IBS is a group of symptoms affecting the digestive system, including abdominal pain, nausea, altered bowel movements, diarrhea, and constipation. Pain is often associated with bowel movements and their changes.
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, both forms of IBD, cause inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. Right side pain can occur if the small intestine or colon is affected. Other symptoms include cramps, nausea, bloody stool, weight loss, and fatigue.
Causes Specific to Females
- Menstrual Cramps: Throbbing lower abdominal pain before and during menstruation is common due to uterine muscle contractions.
- Ovulation Pain (Mittelschmerz): Sharp, cramp-like pain during ovulation can be felt on either side of the lower abdomen.
- Endometriosis: Abnormal tissue growth outside the uterus can cause significant abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, painful periods, and infertility.
- Ovarian Cysts: Fluid-filled sacs on the ovaries can cause dull or sharp pain on the affected side. A ruptured cyst can cause sudden, severe pain.
- Ectopic Pregnancy: A fertilized egg implanted outside the uterus (usually in a fallopian tube) can cause abnormal vaginal bleeding and one-sided pelvic cramping, potentially leading to severe pain if rupture and bleeding occur.
- Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID): Infection in the pelvis, often from an STI, causes lower abdominal pain, fever, unusual vaginal discharge, and odor.
- Ovarian Torsion: Twisting of the ovary cuts off blood supply, causing severe lower abdominal or pelvic pain.
Causes Specific to Males
- Testicular Torsion: Twisting of a testicle around the spermatic cord, cutting off blood flow, causes severe scrotal pain and swelling, potentially accompanied by lower abdominal pain. This is a medical emergency.
- Prostatitis: Inflammation of the prostate gland can cause pain near the genitals, lower back, painful bowel movements or ejaculation, and blood in semen or urine.
When to Seek Medical Attention
Consult a healthcare provider if right side abdominal pain:
- Lasts a week or longer
- Worsens over 1-2 days
- Is accompanied by nausea and vomiting
- Includes bloating lasting over 48 hours, frequent/burning urination, diarrhea lasting five days or more, fever, loss of appetite, vaginal bleeding, or unexplained weight loss.
Seek immediate medical care for:
- Inability to have a bowel movement with nausea
- Blood in vomit
- Dark, tarry, or red stools
- Difficulty breathing
- Abdominal rigidity or tenderness
- Sudden, sharp abdominal pain
- Abdominal pain during pregnancy or cancer treatment
Conclusion
Right side abdominal pain has numerous potential causes. While often minor, persistent or severe pain warrants medical evaluation. Understanding these causes empowers you to recognize when professional help is necessary. Treatment varies depending on the underlying condition and can range from lifestyle modifications to medication or surgery. Don’t hesitate to contact a healthcare professional if you have concerns about right side abdominal pain.
