What Causes Upper-Left Abdominal Pain?

Upper-left abdominal pain can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'serious' to 'generally fatal'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.

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Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose upper-left abdominal pain, we could:

Research the topic
Find a doctor with the time
Use a diagnostic computer system.

The process is the same, whichever method is used.

Step 1: List all Possible Causes

We begin by identifying the disease conditions which have "upper-left abdominal pain" as a symptom. Here are four possibilities:

Pneumonia
Subphrenic Abscess
Possible Urgent Medical Need
Pancreatitis

Step 2: Build a Symptom Checklist

We then identify all possible symptoms and risk factors of each possible cause, and check the ones that apply:

recent onset vomiting

significant right lumbar pain

significant left lumbar pain

attempting suicide

severe hypogastric pain

significant left iliac pain

moderate alcohol consumption

pancreatitis

severe abdominal pain

severe neck pain

mild right hypochondriac discomfort

frequent unexplained vomiting

... and more than 30 others

Step 3: Rule Out or Confirm each Possible Cause

A differential diagnosis of your symptoms and risk factors finds the likely cause of upper-left abdominal pain:

Cause	Probability	Status
Subphrenic Abscess	91%	Confirm
Possible Urgent Medical Need	30%	Unlikely
Pancreatitis	1%	Ruled out
Pneumonia	1%	Ruled out

* This is a simple example to illustrate the process

Arriving at a Correct Diagnosis

The Analyst™ is our online diagnosis tool that learns all about you through a straightforward process of multi-level questioning, providing diagnosis at the end.

If you indicate abdominal pain unaffected by eating, abdominal pain reduced by eating or abdominal pain increased by eating, The Analyst™ will ask further questions including this one:

UPPER-LEFT abdomen: Do you experience discomfort or pain behind the left rib cage?

Possible responses:

→ No / only after meals / don't know
→ Occasional mild discomfort
→ Frequent mild and/or occasional moderate pain
→ Frequent moderate and/or occasional severe pain
→ Frequent or constant severe pain

Based on your response to this question, which may indicate mild left hypochondriac discomfort, moderate left hypochondriac pain, significant left hypochondriac pain or severe left hypochondriac pain, The Analyst™ will consider possibilities such as:

A Potentially Urgent Medical Need

Pancreatitis

One of the most common pancreatitis symptoms is upper abdominal pain, usually centered in the upper middle or upper left part of the abdomen. It often radiates from the front of the abdomen to the back or below the left shoulder blade and typically lasts for several days.

Pneumonia

The pain is on the side(s) of the affected lung(s).

Subphrenic Abscess

The pain occurs on the affected side, in the chest, upper abdomen, and/or shoulder.

Concerned or curious about your health? Try The Analyst™