pain in my right upper right side directly under my ribs

by Candice
(Inwood, United States)

Have been having pain in my right upper right side
directly under my ribs. It's started about 3 weeks ago and only came "attacks".
It would hurt for a few seconds then stop, every 2 to 3 minutes the sharp pain
would come back but still inly lasting about 15 seconds or so and the attacks
lasted about 2 hours. For the past 3 days its has gotten worse. It almost seems
like the Sharp pain doesn't go away and gets worse after eating. I have been
getting awful headaches above my right eye for weeks and they have gotten
worse. It's sending Sharp pains to my back and up to my breast bone.

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Hello Candice,

Thanks for using our free online forum to seek answer to your "attacks" of "pain in my upper right side directly under my ribs" that lasts from minutes to about 2 hours and aggravated by meals.

I think you have described a typical attack of what doctors call biliary colic. It is a moderate to severe pain that results from spasm of a pear shaped sac under our liver (just under the right rib cage very close to the right breast).
This spasm is often as a result of the sac trying to expel an obstruction in its part way, often caused by gallstones.

There may be associated feeling of been sick during the attack (some people actually vomits), sweating, and trying to find a position of comfort.

As you might have also noticed, foods rich in fat also makes this pain worse, like fried meals or oily foods.

If you develop this "pain in my right upper right side directly under my ribs", again, seeing the doctor is very important who may order a scan (HIDA SCAN) for you to help confirm if this pain is due to biliary colic from your gall bladder.

Should you feel feverish, or become jaundiced (yellow discoloration of the white of the eyes), it suggests that the gallbladder has become infected, a condition very related to biliary colic called cholecystitis. It does not sound, from your narrative above, that it has come to this.

Whatever it is, please do not become overly worried. These are conditions that are readily treated, and should not bring you lasting troubles.

Meanwhile, taking some very good pain killers during the attack will help alleviate the pain. A combination of paracetamol (acetaminophen) and diclofenac (if your are okay to take this - please check with your doctor), will most likely help.

We hope you get over this soon.

The Abdopain Team.