Non-pregnancy related pain

A lot of times, pain experienced by a pregnant woman has nothing to do with the pregnancy. Below, we cover the more commonly encountered causes. Pathological conditions which are incidental in pregnancy (i.e. which may have similar symptoms in a non-pregnant state) include:

· Appendicitis

· Kidney (renal) stones

· Urinary tract infection (UTI)

· Gallbladder inflammation (cholecystitis) or stones

· Gastric or duodenal ulcer

· Torsion of ovarian cyst

· Pancreatitis

· Bowel obstruction

· Inflammatory bowel disease

This is by no means everything, all the more reason why an expectant mother should refrain from making her own diagnosis. It is important that any pain in pregnancy is assessed by an expert, to rule out disease.

Some causes, such as appendicitis or urinary tract infection, will require immediate treatment, while others (such as gallstones) may be managed conservatively in pregnancy.

Pain in pregnancy is, in most cases, innocent. In other cases, it is not, and an expert should be allowed to make the distinction.

Appendicitis in pregnancy

The susceptibility is neither increased nor decreased by pregnancy. One in every 2,000 (0.05%) pregnancies will be complicated by appendicitis. A correct diagnosis is very important, as fetal loss is quite high if the appendix perforates. The mother's life is also endangered by appendix rupture.

Gallstones and pancreatitis in pregnancy

Gallstones are generally uncommon in the teens and twenties. The condition becomes more common from the mid-thirties. Obesity is a predisposing factor even at a younger age.

Pregnancy clearly makes pre-existing gallstones worse and symptoms may appear for the first time in pregnancy. Moreover, this may be complicated by inflammation of the gallbladder, a condition seen in 0.1 per cent of all pregnancies (1 in 1000).

As mentioned before, gallstones in pregnancy are usually managed conservatively, but sometimes an operation becomes necessary. Also important is the fact that gallstones predispose to acute pancreatitis, another important, albeit uncommon, cause of pain in pregnancy.