Location of Pain

[Guest guest]

,

You wrote, " Is this a medically known fact? That the pain in the back is from

SOD and in the front from just the panc? "

The situation regarding back pain vs front pain has more to do with the stage of

pancreatitis rather than the cause of the pancreatitis. And, there are never any

cold, hard, solid facts. The pancreas is an elongated organ that looks like a

(crooked) banana, sort of. The pancreas lies posterior in the abdomen, which

means that it lies in the back side of the stomach. It also lies anterior or

above or on top of the kidneys, which of course lie in the back behind the

stomach, above the top of the hip bone. The pancreas is usually found at (for

the women) at about the back of the bra line.

The pain that is felt in the front, particularly in acute pancreatitis and the

early stages of chronic pancreatitis is due to the high acid content and reflux

associated with autodigestion. This pain tends to initiate as a burning

sensation in the substernal area, which is in the middle of the (for the women)

bra line, where the ribs come together.

Most textbooks state, " The mechanism for abdominal pain is controversial but may

involve pancreatic inflammation, increased intrapancreatic pressure,

neuroinflammation or extrapancreatic causes such as obstruction of the common

bile duct or duodenum " .

(http://www.clevelandclinic.org/gastro/endoscopy/patient/pancreatitis.htm)

With this said, the pain can initiate and radiate anywhere. It is said to

radiate when it starts one place then seems to shoot out of move towards another

location. Some people say the pain goes around the side of the chest, others say

it shoots straight through the back.

Most research shows that it isn’t necessarily the portion of the pancreas that

is affected that dictates the location of the pain, i.e.; the tail so the left

side hurts, the head, so the right side hurts. There is, however, merit, in the

location of the pain being associated with the involvement of other organs due

to the pancreatitis, i.e.; splenic thrombosis, peudocysts, etc.

Go look at the photos of the pancreas on the yahoo

site:(http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/pancreatitis/lst)

They may give you a better understanding of where the pancreas is and the

proximity of the organs and why the pain is where it is.

Karyn E. , RN

Executive Director, PAI

http://www.pancassociation.org

Pancreatitis Association International