**Most abdominal pain in children under 12 is treated at home with fluids, rest, simple food, and attention to constipation, since the common causes are constipation, viral stomach bugs, gas, and mild reflux.**
Treatment changes with the cause and the pattern of pain. Pain that comes and goes around the belly button, improves after a bowel movement, and does not wake your child at night usually points to something mild. Pain that stays in one place, especially low on the right side, or that comes with repeated vomiting, fever, or blood in stool, needs a clinician the same day. Daily habits that help include regular water, fruit and vegetables, unhurried toilet time after meals, and slower eating with fewer sweetened drinks. Keep a short log of when the pain happens and what your child ate and passed, because that record often reveals the cause faster than any test.
How doctors treat it
Common questions
How is Abdominal pain - children under age 12 treated?
Most abdominal pain in young children comes from constipation, a stomach bug, gas, or overeating, and it settles at home within a day or two. Offer small sips of fluid, light foods when your child wants them, and rest. For constipation, more water, fruit, and fiber help, and your clinician may suggest a stool softener. Acetaminophen or ibuprofen can ease discomfort; do not give aspirin to children. Do not give anti-diarrhea medicines to a child unless a clinician says so. Call a clinician for pain that stays in one spot for hours, pain low on the right side, green vomit, blood in stool, a hard swollen belly, no urine for 8 hours, or a fever in a baby under 3 months.