Abdominal pain in infants and children.

The challenges of childhood abdominal pain are to treat the majority of children with self-limited conditions of obscure but benign causes and to identify the child with a rare, life-threatening cause of pain. The diagnostic algorithm of abdominal pain during childhood is best compartmentalized into three groups: infants, preschoolers, and school-age children. In infants, bilious vomiting heralds a life-threatening or surgically indicated disorder. Most nonsurgical conditions are related to gastroenteritis, constipation, and reflux. The majority of children with abdominal pain experience spontaneous resolution of their symptoms without specific management. For every 15 school-age children with abdominal pain, 1, at most, will have a serious condition such as appendicitis. Parents and children appreciate a careful appraisal of the symptoms, and the physician should listen to their concerns and perform a thorough examination. Laboratory or radiologic studies are rarely indicated.