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Nonspecific Abdominal Pain

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Mini-invasive Approach in Acute Care Surgery

Part of the book series: Hot Topics in Acute Care Surgery and Trauma ((HTACST))

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Abstract

There is no consensus regarding the definition of acute nonspecific abdominal pain (NSAP); however, it accounts for 5–10% of all admissions to the emergency department (ED).

The underlying conditions of NSAP comprise a spectrum of undiagnosed conditions, both somatic and functional, but its diagnosis remains a “diagnosis of exclusion.” In general, however, NSAP conditions can be classified requiring urgent treatment or a nonurgent management. Several authors have attempted to give guidelines for the diagnosis and management of NSAP.

Management of acute NSAP could be divided into three stages: the first one includes patient’s medical history, physical examination, baseline investigations, and formulation of differential diagnosis. The second stage involves the use of radiological techniques, when needed. The third stage should be represented by diagnostic laparoscopy.

The following chapter focuses on the most recent findings in the worldwide literature to date.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Catanzaro, Catanzaro, Italy

    Gaetano Gallo

  2. Department of General and Emergency Surgery, Polytechnic University of Marche, Ancona, Italy

    Monica Ortenzi & Mario Guerrieri

  3. Trauma and Acute Care Surgery Unit, Niguarda Ca Granda Hospital, Milan, Italy

    Francesco Virdis

  4. Department of General Surgery, “La Sapienza” University of Rome—Sant’Andrea University Hospital, Rome, Italy

    Marta Goglia

  5. Department of General Surgery, University of Insubria, University Hospital of Varese, ASST Sette Laghi, Regione Lombardia, Italy

    Salomone Di Saverio

Authors
  1. Gaetano Gallo
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  2. Monica Ortenzi
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  3. Mario Guerrieri
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  4. Francesco Virdis
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  5. Marta Goglia
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  6. Salomone Di Saverio
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gaetano Gallo .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. General, Emergency and Trauma Surgery Department, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, Pisa, Italy

    Federico Coccolini

  2. Emergency Surgery Department, Cagliari University Hospital, A.O.U. di Cagliari, Monserrato, Cagliari, Italy

    Mauro Podda

  3. Oklahoma Univ. School of Med. at Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA

    Robert B. Lim

  4. General, Emergency and Trauma Surgery Department, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, Pisa, Italy

    Massimo Chiarugi

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Gallo, G., Ortenzi, M., Guerrieri, M., Virdis, F., Goglia, M., Di Saverio, S. (2023). Nonspecific Abdominal Pain. In: Coccolini, F., Podda, M., Lim, R.B., Chiarugi, M. (eds) Mini-invasive Approach in Acute Care Surgery. Hot Topics in Acute Care Surgery and Trauma. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-39001-2_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-39001-2_20

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-39001-2

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