Constipation as Cause of Acute Abdominal Pain in Children

ObjectiveTo evaluate the causes of acute abdominal pain in a large academic pediatric primary care population.Study designThe complete charts of 962 children, ≥4 years old, who were seen for at least 1 health maintenance visit during a 6-month period, were reviewed retrospectively for complaints and cause of acute abdominal pain.ResultsWe found that 9% of the 962 children had a visit for acute abdominal pain, with significantly more girls (12%) than boys (5%) having this complaint. Acute and chronic constipation were the most frequent causes of acute abdominal pain, occurring in 48% of subjects. A surgical cause was present in 2% of subjects. The cause for the acute abdominal pain remained unknown in 19% of subjects. We did not find significant differences in diagnoses in the primary care clinics versus emergency department.ConclusionsWe found that constipation was the most common cause of acute abdominal pain in children.