Medicines for stomach pain should be taken only after the cause has been determined. The first question that needs to be answered in order to choose the right remedy for the stomach is: does it really hurt? If there is no doubt about the origin of the pain, you should find out the reasons for its occurrence.
How can you determine where your stomach is located?
Draw a conventional horizontal line through the navel. The stomach will be located above it. Approximately 2/3 of its parts are located in the left hypochondrium, the remaining part is in the epigastric region (under the costal arch of the chest). Therefore, stomach pain is most often felt in the area of the 4th intercostal space on the left.
Figure 1 - When your stomach hurts, you need to find out whether the stomach is to blame
Main causes of stomach pain
The need to take syrups or tablets for stomach pain most often results from:
- unhealthy diet - regularly skipping meals, eating dry food, overeating, fasting, alcohol abuse, eating sour, spicy food on an empty stomach;
- poisoning with low-quality products, inedible substances;
- cholecystitis - inflammation of the gallbladder, stones in it;
- pancreatitis - inflammation of the pancreas;
- gastritis, diverticulitis - inflammatory diseases of the gastric mucosa;
- stomach ulcer, duodenal ulcer;
- gastroesophageal reflux - the valve that separates the esophagus from the stomach does not work correctly, resulting in digested food being thrown into the esophagus;
- parasites – cause intoxication of the body, which is manifested by vomiting, nausea, bloating, etc.;
- intolerance to gluten, lactose, and other substances;
- prolonged stress.
Figure 2 - About 10% of stomach pain is caused by an ulcer
How does it hurt?
The pain can be aching, sharp, dull, bursting, squeezing, cutting, stabbing, pulling.
| Nature of pain | Possible diseases |
| Sudden acute | Cholecystitis, pancreatitis, duodenal ulcer |
| Sudden sharp | Poisoning, chemical burn of mucous membrane, perforation of ulcer |
| Dull aching | Chronic gastritis, initial stage of ulcer. With gastritis, pain appears on an empty stomach and immediately after eating |
| Dull aching, turning into a burning sensation | Acute gastritis, ulcer |
| Spasms, contractions (most often at night or after eating) | Inflammation of the duodenum, ulcer |
| Mild aching pain that does not disappear for a long time | Polyp, malignant formation |
| Severe pain, contractions | Gastrointestinal infections |
| Severe pain in the upper abdomen that lessens over time but does not go away completely | Diseases of the large intestine (eg, colitis) |
| Severe pain in the navel area that moves to the right and up | Appendicitis |
A short-term “shooting” pain that is felt after a sudden movement or when inhaling indicates a spasm of the diaphragm. In this case, the stomach may not be to blame - such sensations are characteristic of circulatory disorders and inflammatory processes. Therefore, medications for stomach pain are likely to be ineffective.
Figure 3 - The nature of pain is important for diagnosis
To accurately make a diagnosis and prescribe effective treatment, a description of the pain is not enough. You need to undergo a series of tests, for example, for the presence of Helicobacter pylori (the bacterium that causes stomach ulcers), as well as ultrasound, FGDS. That is why you should ask not a pharmacist, but a gastroenterologist, what to drink for stomach pain.
Under no circumstances should you endure stomach pain or suppress it with medications without a doctor’s prescription. Painful sensations are a signal that something is already going wrong in the body, and urgent professional intervention in its functioning is necessary.
Medicines for stomach pain that you can take while waiting for the doctor
It happens that the pain in the stomach becomes unbearable, and you still have to take some kind of pill. This should be done as a last resort, since taking the drug can distort the picture of the disease and give grounds for an incorrect diagnosis. In general, doctors allow you to take:
- analgesic - medications that temporarily relieve pain, for example, analgin. At the same time, the situation in the stomach does not change, and there is no need to delay visiting a doctor;
- antispasmodic - drugs that stimulate the smooth muscles of internal organs: Papaverine, No-Shpa, Duspatalin, Trimedat. As a result, the passage of food and gases is facilitated, and muscle spasms disappear.
If you have stomach pain, it is better not to take pills immediately before seeing a doctor. To help quickly make the correct diagnosis and prescribe treatment, prepare the following information:
Figure 4 - Suspensions and tablets for stomach pain should not be used before examination by a doctor
- the circumstances of the pain (before, during, after eating, what you ate, drank, or how long you didn’t eat or drink, whether there were abdominal injuries, blows, stress);
- other symptoms: nausea, bloating, foul-smelling gas, rash, vomiting, heartburn, dizziness, diarrhea/constipation, change in the consistency and color of stool, blood, mucus in the stool;
- did you take medications for stomach pain before applying, what are you currently taking for other diseases;
- What changes have you had in your health status recently?
Try to move less, do not eat and, if possible, do not drink. You cannot give enemas or take laxatives.
Note! Never use a hot heating pad or other heat. Sometimes this does help reduce pain, but it increases inflammation, bleeding and pus formation. Such self-medication can be life-threatening.
Figure 5 - If you have stomach pain, you should not use a heating pad
Which specialists treat dyspeptic problems?
The huge variability in the causes of dyspeptic disorders makes us think once again about the inadvisability of self-medication. While eliminating one cause on their own, people rarely manage to see another at the same time. A person who tries day after day to get rid of the feeling of nausea is not able to detect the presence of internal bleeding or cancer.
Even with harmless symptoms, especially if they last a long time (fever for more than three days), it makes sense to consult a specialist. Only a doctor, having carefully collected anamnesis and analyzed the results of the data obtained, is able to select adequate treatment. Which doctors deal with problems of digestive system disorders:
- Therapist is the main local attending physician. Knowing the patient's medical history, if necessary, he will refer the sick person to the appropriate specialist.
- If the problem lies exclusively in the gastrointestinal tract, then this will be a gastroenterologist; in other cases, you will need to consult additional specialists (cardiologist, neurologist, endocrinologist, nephrologist or urologist, for women - gynecologist).
- If acute conditions are suspected - appendicitis or internal bleeding, the patient is referred to a surgeon, and oncologists deal with the problems of tumor-like neoplasms.
People, having eliminated the primary manifestations, are in no hurry to see specialists in order to achieve a complete recovery. They prefer to make fatal mistakes. A disease that is not detected in time can destroy a full life by taking root.
In what dosage forms are stomach medications available?
Medicines for the stomach are available in the form of tablets, syrups, suspensions and powders, which should be dissolved in juice or water. Some drugs are available in different dosage forms. It depends on their purpose and characteristics of the action. For example, enveloping and adsorbing drugs (Almagel, Maalox, Phosphalugel, Gaviscon) are produced in the form of a suspension, and children's drugs are in the form of syrup.
Medicines for stomach pain in tablets:
- analgesics;
- antacids;
- proton pump blockers;
- astringents;
- gastroprotectors;
- combination drugs;
- antispasmodics.
What to drink for your stomach?
What exactly to drink for stomach pain depends on the diagnosis:
- for gastritis: Smecta, Almagel - to restore the gastric mucosa and against diarrhea, to relieve inflammation - Iberogast, to eliminate spasms - No-Shpa, Cerucal, to correct the enzyme composition of the medium - Mezim, Digestal;
- for cholecystitis, gallstones: Allochol, Gepabene;
- in case of poisoning: sorbents Enterosgel, Lactofiltrum, Activated or White carbon, Smecta. Analgesics will also help get rid of stomach pain in the initial stages of the disease: Analgin, Baralgin.
- for high acidity: antacids Gaviscon, Rennie, Maalox;
- for ulcers: wound healing - Methyluracil, Actovegin, to suppress Helicobacter pylori - Ampicillin, Pilobact-Neo, proton pump blockers Omez, Omeprazole, Nexium, other drugs for complex treatment, selected individually based on test results.
A number of medications for heartburn and stomach pain are useful in a variety of situations. For example, Smecta can be taken for stomach pain caused by eating disorders, heartburn, bloating, acute or chronic diarrhea, gastritis, stomach and duodenal ulcers, colitis.
Many medicines have analogues. For example, to relieve spasms of the smooth muscles of internal organs, you can buy No-Shpu or Drotaverine. The main active ingredient of these drugs is the same – drotaverine. However, if you pay about $1 for 30 tablets of Drotaverine, then for the same number of yellow tablets called No-Shpa - about $2.
Medications
If adjusting your diet and lifestyle does not bring relief, then you need to choose the right medications to help get rid of heaviness in the stomach. It is necessary to take into account that it is prohibited to use medications regularly, as this can cause disruption of the functioning of the pancreas and stomach problems. To alleviate general symptoms, you need to take medications such as:
- "Renny";
- "Almagel";
- "Gastal";
- "Mezim."
When dysbacteriosis occurs, you can use "Acepol". If the patient has a stool disorder and hard feces, then a mild laxative such as Fitolax should be used.
Which is better - Gaviscon or Almagel?
The effect of both of these gels for stomach pain is that they form a dense barrier (film) that envelops the gastric contents and is not absorbed during digestion. This protects the inflamed stomach walls from the effects of acid. At the same time, the composition of the gastric juice itself does not change, and food digestion occurs in full. The gel-like film also protects the esophagus if stomach contents are thrown into it, preventing heartburn and inflammation. To get rid of stomach pain, these gels or suspensions should be taken after meals without drinking water. The dose of the drug lasts approximately 4 hours. The cost of both drugs, depending on the offers of pharmacy chains, differs by literally $0.3–0.5.
Figure 6 - A number of drugs for stomach pain have a similar effect
You should make a choice based on your health status, side effects and the composition of the drugs. For example, Gaviscon is allowed for pregnant women to take, but Almagel is not recommended because the necessary studies have not been conducted on it. Therefore, the right to make the final decision on prescribing the drug is transferred to the doctor, who will weigh the benefits for the mother and the likelihood of harm to the fetus.
Effective carminatives (defoamers)
Tablets for bloating and gas formation, represented by a group of drugs under the general name carminatives, promote the rapid absorption of gases into the blood, as well as their natural elimination from the body.
Espumisan
Espumisan is an effective carminative drug. It contains simethicone. This is an active substance that helps the digestive system get rid of existing gas bubbles and prevents the formation of new gases.
The drug is recommended to be taken not only for bloating and increased gas production, but also before carrying out diagnostic measures (examination of internal organs).
Long-term use of Espumisan is allowed, including by pregnant and lactating women. No side effects were recorded.
The drug has few contraindications - among them:
- intestinal obstruction;
- individual intolerance;
- age up to 6 years (Espumizan baby drops are suitable for him).
If an allergic reaction occurs to any auxiliary component, the drug should be discontinued.
To get rid of increased gas formation, drink Espumisan after meals, 2 capsules (3 to 5 doses per day).
Bobotik (drops) and Sub Simplex (suspension)
Simethicone is also contained in Bobotik drops. It works the same way as the previous remedy. And the indications for use are the same as for Espumisan.
Contraindications are:
- intestinal obstruction;
- individual intolerance;
- obstructive pathologies of the digestive system.
The drug can be taken by very young children who are already 28 days old (daily dose: 8 drops every 6 hours). Adults are prescribed 16 drops in each of 4 daily doses. Treatment is continued until the unpleasant symptoms disappear.
During pregnancy, as well as during lactation, the use of the drug is possible in case of urgent need and only after the permission of a specialist.
Another similar carminative containing simethicone is the “Sab Simplex” suspension.
The indications and contraindications are the same as for Bobotik drops. Recommended daily dosage for the treatment of increased gas formation in adults: 5 times 35-45 drops.
Take with caution during pregnancy. If possible, use more harmless analogues. The drug is approved for patients with diabetes.
Pepsan-R
"Pepsan-R" refers to complex drugs - it is a carminative, anti-inflammatory and antisecretory agent. The active substance (dimethicone), which is contained in the capsules, reduces gas formation in the intestines and eliminates pain.
Indications for use are:
- discomfort, painful cramps in the stomach caused by the release of large amounts of hydrochloric acid;
- heartburn;
- flatulence;
- nausea;
- disturbances in the normal functioning of the intestines (diarrhea);
- before diagnosing the gastrointestinal tract.
Contraindications: individual intolerance, age under 14 years.
Side effects: allergic reaction, pain in the abdomen.
Adults drink 1 capsule (three times a day) before meals. The duration of the course is agreed upon with a specialist.
What tablets for stomach pain can be used during pregnancy?
Pregnancy significantly narrows the list of medications for stomach pain that a doctor can prescribe to a patient. Most often, pregnant women experience heartburn, which has physiological causes. Since the stomach is a hollow organ, the growing uterus compresses it the most. This is especially noticeable in the third trimester. Such heartburn is treated symptomatically - you can take Smecta, Rennie, and other antacid drugs.
Figure 7 - Many medications for stomach pain are contraindicated during pregnancy
In more complex cases, when a pregnant woman is diagnosed with gastritis, ulcers, cholecystitis or pancreatitis, treatment regimens are drawn up by doctors. In this case, the risk to the fetus is compared with the benefit to the mother. If the disease can be “preserved,” maintenance medications are prescribed, and the main treatment is transferred to the postpartum period. In any case, there is no need to panic: new remedies for stomach pain with wide areas of application are constantly being developed.
Carrying out treatment
Treatment of heaviness in the stomach and nausea must be comprehensive, since only this guarantees the most positive result. The method of therapy should be selected only by a qualified doctor.
You must follow a special diet. It is necessary to exclude fatty, spicy, fast food, and fried foods from food. In this case, all these restrictions help normalize the patient’s well-being. Constant stress also negatively affects the functioning of the stomach, so it is imperative to avoid situations that traumatize the psyche. If the patient’s occupation is associated with frequent stressful situations, then you need to consult a psychologist and take a course of sedatives to eliminate the negative effects of stress on the digestive organs. In addition, eliminating stress is beneficial not only for the digestive system, but also for blood vessels and the heart.
If the cause of stomach pain, heaviness and nausea is pregnancy, then you should definitely consult a gynecologist who will tell you how to properly eliminate the unpleasant symptoms.
Eating small portions will help you feel better. If a dangerous disease is detected, it is imperative to undergo complex therapy using various drugs. All medications must be prescribed only by the attending physician. Additionally, you can use traditional medicine.
