Medical Questions » Gut (Intestines) Questions » Question No. 434
| Question: | Why do some children complain of tummy pain frequently? |
| Answer: | Abdominal migraine is very common in children. It may be due to spasm of the muscles in the abdominal wall, or due to spasms of the gut. The reason for the spasm is almost invariably anxiety and stress. Thus many children only develop these pains on school days, befote exams, when they have arguments with friends etc.
The best treatment is to give the child a little bit of sympathy and if necessary, a mild pain-killer. No great fuss should be made because this may cause the pains to be used as an attention-seeking device.
Children with recurrent pain must be investigated to exclude any medical cause, and if none is found, a psychologist may be able to teach the child how to cope with the problem.
|
|
|
