How is pediatric nonspecific abdominal pain managed in family medicine?

January 01, 0001

How is pediatric nonspecific abdominal pain managed in family medicine?

Nonspecific abdominal pain (NSAP)in children is frequently seen by family physicians. These Dutch researchers wanted to characterize how NSAP is managed in family medicine settings. They utilized registration data from the Second Dutch National Survey of General Practice to elucidate incidence as well as referral and prescriptions patterns in cases of NSAP in children aged 4-17.

The researchers found: "The incidence of NSAP was 25.0 per 1,000 person years. Most children (92.7%) with newly diagnosed NSAP (N = 1,480) consulted their doctor for this condition once or twice. Factors independently associated with NSAP were female sex (odds ratio [OR

The researchers concluded: "Childhood NSAP is a common problem in family practice. Most patients visit their doctor once or twice for this problem. Family physicians use little additional testing and make few referrals in their management of childhood NSAP. Despite the lack of evidence for effectiveness, family physicians commonly prescribe medication for NSAP."

Nonspecific abdominal pain is, according to this study, is common in the family medicine setting and overwhelmingly treated as a benign condition.

For the full abstract, click here.

Annals of Family Medicine 9(4):337-343, July 2011 © 2011 Annals of Family Medicine, Inc.
Childhood Nonspecific Abdominal Pain in Family Practice: Incidence, Associated Factors, and Management. Marieke J. Gieteling, Yvonne Lisman-van Leeuwen, Johannes C. van der Wouden, Francois G. Schellevis, and Marjolein Y. Berger. Correspondence to Marjolein Y. Berger: [email protected]

Category: A. General/Unspecified. Keywords: abdominal pain, nonspecific, children, medications, referrals, epidemiological study, journal watch.
Synopsis edited by Dr Paul Schaefer, Toledo, Ohio. Posted on Global Family Doctor 26 July 2011

Pearls are an independent product of the Cochrane primary care group and are meant for educational use and not to guide clinical care.

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