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A cramp can be defined as a painful muscle pull that can be caused due to a number of reasons, such as over usage of the particular muscle, lack of oxygen, lack of water in the body, or salt deficiencies. Cramps are a very common medical problem that can happen on a day-to-day basis also. For example, if you’re a regular swimmer, getting an abdominal cramp is possible. In most cases, the cause is overuse of the muscle concerned. Abdominal cramps are also caused during menstruation in women. How to treat abdominal cramps is an easy yet twisted question. There are many reasons and cures, but very few give immediate relief.
Mostly abdominal cramps last only for a few minutes or a few hours at max. So most people don’t prefer going to the doctor for such a meager reason. So now the question is how to treat abdominal cramps. There are many ways of going about it. The simplest way is to have a pain killer. Pain killers help in providing temporary relief, for a more permanent and effective solution on how to treat abdominal cramps, you need to find out the causative agent. If it’s a parasitic infection, the abdominal cramps will be accompanied by diarrhea.
General Treatment for Abdominal Cramps
If you’re searching for different means and ways on how to treat abdominal cramps, you can start by drinking plenty of water and following a healthy diet on an everyday basis. Dehydration and nutritional deficiencies are a few of the major reasons for abdominal cramps.
Hot and cold packs give instant relief in case of cramps. Most people prefer hot packs to cold ones. If you’re still looking for methods on how to treat abdominal cramps, then you can go to a physician for a general check-up. Sometimes abdominal cramps can have other underlying causes too, such as; diverticulitis or a yeast infection.
Menstrual Cramps
Most cases of severe abdominal cramps are reported in women, during the menstrual cycle. Menstrual cramps usually arise in the lower abdomen. They could also lead to severe pain in the lower back region. Menstrual cramps can be relieved by painkillers such as ibuprofen or paracetamol. Stretching, hot and cold packs are also useful. Unresponsive menstrual cramps could be symptoms of serious complications with women, thus it’s best to visit an ob-gyn in such cases.
When it comes to menstrual cramps, the diagnosis should not be a problem if you regularly visit your obstetrician or gynecologist, which you should. If painkillers, stretches and heating pads don’t work well enough, it’s important to get yourself checked, especially if you are facing other problems such as excessive blood loss, the erratic occurrence of menses, etc. menstrual cramps usually occur in the lower abdomen region. Menstrual cramps can be characterized by a sudden stinging pain I your uterus i.e. the lowermost abdominal region. If you get frequent menstrual cramps, consulting your physician is recommended. Other than that, there are plenty of medicines available in the markets that give immediate pain relief from menstrual cramps.
Diagnosing the Causes of Abdominal Cramps
An excellent method on how to treat abdominal cramps is to keep track of their occurrence. Since the problem is common enough to be treated by household remedies and may also be symptomatic of bigger complications, it’s good to be aware. If it happens only after strenuous activity involving abdominal muscles, it’s probably not a problem. It’s good to have a strong set of abs because a well-exercised muscle is less susceptible to cramps. At the onset of cramps after muscle activity, consuming antacids containing calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate is useful. Persistence may indicate low levels of potassium, calcium, or blood salt, or even dehydration.
If you are confident that none of these are the causes (i.e. you increase water, salt, and potassium and calcium-rich food intake, and still cramps persist quite frequently), it could be something more serious, such as colic, which usually results in sharp, stabbing pain, or appendicitis. Gastrointestinal pain caused by constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, etc is a dull pain different from cramps. Abdominal cramps can be signs of colic. Colic is abdominal pain that starts and stops abruptly. Causes can be kidney stones, gallstones, and lead poisoning.
