Acute Abdomen: An Enigma

[Acute abdomen].

Acute Abdomen

The term 'acute abdomen' represents a rapid onset of severe symptoms that may indicate lifethreatening intra-abdominal pathology. Pain is usually a feature but is not always the case. A pain-free acute abdomen is more likely in the elderly, in children and in the third trimester of pregnancy. [1] The differential diagnosis is extremely wide and definitive diagnosis is often difficult, particula...

Acute Abdomen

The term 'acute abdomen' represents a rapid onset of severe symptoms that may indicate life-threatening intra-abdominal pathology. Pain is usually a feature but is not always the case. A pain-free acute abdomen is more likely in the elderly, in children and in the third trimester of pregnancy. [1] The differential diagnosis is extremely wide and definitive diagnosis is often difficult, particul...

Infant botulism mimicking an acute abdomen.

Botulism is the acute, flaccid paralysis caused by a neurotoxin produced by Clostridium botulinum. In the infant, clinical symptoms are usually unspecific such as poor feeding, weak suck, feeble cry, drooling, followed by a symmetric, descending, flaccid paralysis beginning with the cranial nerve musculature. The initial symptoms of the disease are often similar to several diseases and therefor...

Pulmonary endometriosis mimicking an acute abdomen.

A case of pulmonary endometriosis is reported, to illustrate the classic catamenial symptoms of the disease. The patient also developed symptoms and signs suggesting a perforated abdominal viscus; laparotomy was normal and the features may have resulted from a previously unreported effect of diaphragmatic endometrial foci.