Pancreatic pain

Digestive and endocrine glands are called pancreatic. A small body, but this does not affect the immense importance that it plays in the life of the human body. The pancreas is located between the stomach and the spine in the abdominal cavity. It is surrounded by the liver, intestines and other internal organs. Appearance resembles a grape brush.

The pancreas, firstly, produces juice containing the necessary enzymes to digest food in the intestine. Her second duty is to produce hormones, including insulin, which is known to everyone, which regulates the level of glucose in the blood. If the gland ducts are clogged, the enzymes produced lose the ability to escape "out." They linger in the pancreas and destroy its cells, thus digesting the organ itself. That's when the pancreas hurts. The most common diagnosis is pancreatitis, which can be acute or get a chronic form.

Why does the pancreas hurt?

The first line in the ranking of causes is occupied by alcohol and cholelithiasis. According to statistics, they provoke the disease in 70 percent of cases. The cause of pancreatitis may be infection or abdominal trauma, metabolic disruptions, certain medications, a large number of alcoholic beverages taken in one day, fatty and spicy food, excess of fatty foods in the diet, stress and smoking.

If the pancreas is hurting because of acute pancreatitis, it is extremely dangerous to treat with treatment, because the necrotic areas of the gland are dead, which do not recover. Procrastination can lead to cardiovascular or renal failure. Enzymes in case of an attack of acute pancreatitis dissolve the pancreatic cells, depriving it of working capacity.

If the pancreas is hurting because of chronic pancreatitis, which acts less aggressively on the organ, it will lead to changes in the gland. The cells destroyed by enzymes are replaced by a connective tissue that is unable to produce either enzymes of digestion or hormones. As a result, diabetes mellitus and some intestinal diseases develop. In some cases, chronic pancreatitis leads to pancreatic cancer, atrophy, sclerosis, and abscess.

How does the pancreas hurt?

The pancreas hurts, as a rule, in the upper part of the abdomen from the left side or "under the stomach". Often the pain, as it were, girdles or gives in the back, can bother constantly, press, whine or manifest as seizures.

The second signal of the disease is diarrhea. The appearance of the chair becomes mushy and contains pieces of unboiled foods. Among the signs of pancreatitis is an unpleasant eructation, attacks of nausea, episodic vomiting, flatulence. As a rule, the appetite disappears, the body weight decreases. So does the pancreas.

The risk group includes men who drink excessive amounts of alcohol and fatty, spicy foods, women during pregnancy and at the very beginning of the postpartum period. With regular pains at the top of the abdomen (three or more times a week), even in the absence of other symptoms, you should consult a gastroenterologist who will diagnose and prescribe an adequate treatment.

Modern medicine has the means to cope with pancreatic diseases, including cancer, but only when diagnosed at an early stage, when the cancer has not yet begun to spread. But also at the started stages different treatment is applied, which prolongs life and improves its quality.

The pancreas hurts . What should I do first?

When suddenly there is a sharp, unbearable pain in the left hypochondrium, attacks of nausea and vomiting, an increase in temperature, you need to call an "ambulance" - these are the symptoms of acute pancreatitis.

Self-treatment is dangerous.

Before the arrival of medical workers, one should not eat or drink in order not to stimulate the production of enzymes by the pancreas.

Do not take any painkillers.

Do not heat the area of the stomach with a warm water bottle.

Sit down, kneel to chest. Put a hot-water bottle with ice on the left on the stomach, below the ribs.