The pain is usually generalised and lacks of focal tenderness. Although it is not life-threatening, the chronicity of pain can be troublesome to the patient affecting both physical and mental health. It has a big impact on patient’s daily activities and quality of health. Additionally, it also impacts family members through time off work and attending multiple clinic consultations, for example.

At Paediatric Gut Investigation Clinic, we are able to treat young patients suffering from the condition at our private clinic in Charlwood, West Sussex.

Children with a long-standing history of chronic abdominal pain tend to be anxious and hypervigilant. Often they feel despondent, suffer from low moods and are easily fatigued. There is no universal effective treatment for children suffering from the issue. Education, reassurance, and cognitive behavioural therapy may be useful in alleviating the pain. Anti-spasmodic medications are sometimes helpful in alleviating the pain.

Most of the time, we can discover the cause of your child’s abdominal pain. Food allergies and intolerances (milk, egg, wheat, soya, fructose, lactose, sucrose) are usually the culprits. Other causes include overt constipation (can be difficult to diagnose), helicobacter pylori gastritis, coeliac disease (autoimmune gluten hypersensitivity), pancreatitis and non-specific abdominal pain (when all common causes have been ruled out). We will aim to discover the cause of your child’s abdominal pain by carrying out various investigations, such as Abdominal ultrasound, Hydrogen breath test and Allergy test.

Below is a video explaining why we perform an ultrasound and what to expect during the procedure.