Chronic abdominal pain: a surgical or psychiatric symptom?

A prospective investigation of chronic, non-specific abdominal pain in 20 patients is reported. The cause was found to be psychiatric in 8 (40 per cent), while a surgical cause was found in only 3 (15 per cent). Four had irritable colon (20 per cent) and no diagnosis was made in 5 (25 per cent). It is suggested that such pain is more often a psychiatric than a surgical symptom and therefore a psychiatric consultation should be a routine part of the investigation.