ABSTRACT
Acute abdominal pain is a common complaint seen in the accident and emergency (A&E) department. The main objective in dealing with a child with abdominal pain is to differentiate between benign and self-limited conditions, such as constipation or gastroenteritis (GE), and more life-threatening surgical conditions, such as volvulus or appendicitis. The term 'acute abdomen' refers to an intra-abdominal condition that usually requires a surgical intervention. Recurrent abdominal pain (RAP) is a very common symptom estimated to affect around 10 percent of school-age children. Parasites, such as giardia, are a common and important cause of RAP in developing countries. Most children with RAP have no organic diseases (functional abdominal pain) and present typically as a central abdominal pain, with no guarding, rebound or rigidity, and without abnormal physical sign on investigation. Recurrent crying episodes in an infant who draws their legs up and appears to be in pain are defined as colic, not RAP.
