Symptom: Indigestion

Introduction: Indigestion

The symptom "indigestion" is not usually accurate enough for a full diagnosis. People use the word indigestion to mean various abdominal symptoms such as gas, wind, diarrhea, heartburn, reflux, nausea, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, abdominal swelling, or other digestive symptoms. The causes of these various digestive symptoms needs to be explored for more precise information.

» Review Causes of Indigestion: full list

Causes of Indigestion:

The following medical conditions are some of the possible causes of Indigestion. There are likely to be other possible causes, so ask your doctor about your symptoms.

• Various other possible symptoms described as "indigestion":
  • Gas
  • Wind (see Belching)
  • Diarrhea
  • Heartburn
  • Reflux
  • Nausea
  • Abdominal discomfort
  • Abdominal swelling
• Pregnancy
• Peptic ulcer
• Non-ulcer dyspepsia
• Esophagitis
• Hiatal hernia
• Gallstones
• Stomach cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Achalasia
• Chronic pancreatitis
• See also causes of gas, wind, diarrhea, heartburn, reflux, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, abdominal swelling, or other digestive symptoms
• Duodenal ulcer
• Gastric ulcer
• Gastritis
• H. Pylori
• Gastric cancer
• Hiatus hernia
• Oesophageal reflux
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Tobacco
• Alcohol

See full list of 90 causes of Indigestion

» Review Causes of Indigestion: full list

Causes of Types of Indigestion:

Review the causes of these more specific types of Indigestion:

• Dyspepsia (56 causes)
• Non-ulcer dyspepsia

More types of Indigestion

Indigestion: Multiple Symptom Checker

Listed below are some combinations of symptoms associated with Indigestion, as listed in our database. Visit the Multiple Symptoms Checker, to add and remove symptoms and research your condition.

Multiple Symptom Checker - Other Symptoms

• Indigestion: Multiple Symptom Checker

Multiple Symptom Checker Combinations

• Indigestion and Digestive symptoms (59 causes)
• Indigestion and Abdominal symptoms (57 causes)
• Indigestion and Nerve symptoms (57 causes)
• Indigestion and Pain (56 causes)
• Indigestion and Sensations (55 causes)
• Indigestion and Abdominal pain (45 causes)
• Indigestion and Dyspepsia (40 causes)
• Indigestion and Swelling symptoms (37 causes)
• Indigestion and Vomiting (35 causes)
• Indigestion and Weight loss (34 causes)
• Indigestion and Nausea (33 causes)
• Indigestion and Bowel problems (32 causes)
• Indigestion and Stool symptoms (32 causes)
• Indigestion and Body symptoms (32 causes)
• Indigestion and Fatigue (32 causes)
• Indigestion and Weight symptoms (31 causes)
• Indigestion and Eating symptoms (31 causes)
• Indigestion and Food symptoms (29 causes)
• Indigestion and Abdominal swelling (28 causes)
• Indigestion and Bowel movements (28 causes)

See full list of 1258 Multiple Symptom Checker combinations related to Indigestion

Causes of General Symptom Types

Research the causes of these more general types of symptom:

• Digestive symptoms (2184 causes)
• Dyspepsia (56 causes)
• Abdominal symptoms (1394 causes)

Causes of Similar Symptoms to Indigestion

Research the causes of these symptoms that are similar to, or related to, the symptom Indigestion:

• Gas (73 causes)
• Wind
• Diarrhea (830 causes)
• Heartburn (57 causes)
• Reflux
• Nausea (827 causes)
• Abdominal pain (1067 causes)
• Abdominal discomfort (71 causes)
• Abdominal swelling (414 causes)
• Digestive symptoms (2184 causes)

Diagnostic Guides for Indigestion

Medical Books Excerpts Read excerpts from published book sections related to Indigestion from the following published medical books for more detailed information about Indigestion. Free access (no registration): read all online diagnostic book sections about Indigestion

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Misdiagnosis and Indigestion

Chronic digestive conditions often misdiagnosed: When diagnosing chronic symptoms of the digestive tract, there are a variety of conditions that may be misdiagnosed. The...read more »

Intestinal bacteria disorder may be hidden cause: One of the lesser known causes of diarrhea is an imbalance of bacterial in the gut, sometimes called intestinal imbalance. The digestive system contains a variety of "good" bacteria that aid digestion, and they can...read more »

Antibiotics often causes diarrhea: The use of antibiotics are very likely to cause some level of diarrhea in patients. The reason is that antibiotics kill off not only ...read more »

Food poisoning may actually be an infectious disease: Many people who come down with "stomach symptoms" like diarrhea assume that it's "something I ate" (i.e. food poisoning). In fact, it's more likely to be an infectious diarrheal...read more »

Mesenteric adenitis misdiagnosed as appendicitis in children: Because appendicitis is one of the more feared conditions for a child with abdominal pain, it can be over-diagnosed (it can, of course, also fail to be diagnosed with...read more »

Celiac disease often fails to be diagnosed cause of chronic digestive symptoms: One of the most common chronic digestive conditions is celiac disease, a malabsorption disorder with a variety of symptoms (see symptoms of celiac disease). A...read more »

Chronic digestive diseases hard to diagnose: There is an inherent difficulty in diagnosing the various types of chronic digestive diseases. Some of the better known possibilities are peptic ulcer, colon cancer, ...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Indigestion

Diagnostic tests for Indigestion:

Various tests are used in the diagnosis of Indigestion. Some of these are listed below :

• Physical examination
  • Look for evidence of anemia - e.g. pale skin and conjunctiva - may suggest chronic oesophagitis, chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer or stomach cancer.
  • Look for evidence of jaundice - e.g. yellow skin and sclera of eyes - may suggest gallstones that pass into common bile duct or cancer of the pancreas.
  • Abdominal examination for tenderness - e.g. tenderness in epigastric area (midline below ribs) may suggest peptic ulceration; tenderness over the right upper abdomen may suggest gall bladder disease.
  • Abdominal examination for mass - e.g. epigastric mass may suggest stomach cancer.

See full list of 25 diagnostic tests for Indigestion

Diagnosis Checklist: Questions your doctor may ask (and why!)

During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques in their assessment of Indigestion. Your doctor may ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to remember that your consultation is a two-way process and any extra information you can share with your doctor about your symptoms may help them with their diagnosis. Some of the questions your doctor may ask are listed below:

• How long have you had indigestion? - to determine if acute or chronic. Chronic indigestion is defined as occurring for more than 3 months.
• What exactly do you mean by indigestion and how would you describe the discomfort? - Indigestion is a difficult, sometimes vague, symptom to define or evaluate. People use the word indigestion to mean various abdominal symptoms such as gas, wind, diarrhea, heartburn, reflux, nausea, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, abdominal swelling, or other digestive symptoms. e.g. A burning pain may suggest gastro-esophageal reflux; constricting pain may suggest angina, heart attack or esophageal spasm; deep gnawing pain may suggest peptic ulcer.
• Can you point to exactly where the discomfort is and where it radiates to? - can help with diagnosis e.g. discomfort between the shoulder blades may suggest esophageal spasm, gall bladder disease or a duodenal ulcer; discomfort behind the sternum (breastbone) may suggest esophageal disorders or angina; discomfort in epigastrium (midline just below ribs) may suggest disorders of the biliary system, stomach or duodenum.
• Is there anything that makes the discomfort worse? - e.g. eating food may aggravate a gastric ulcer; eating fried or fatty foods will aggravate biliary disease, esophageal disorders and functional dyspepsia ( dyspepsia when no specific cause can be demonstrated); bending over will aggravate gastro-esophageal reflux; alcohol will aggravate gastro-esophageal reflux, oesophagitis, gastritis, peptic ulcer and pancreatitis.
• Is there anything you have found that makes the discomfort better? - e.g. eating food may relieve a duodenal ulcer.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Indigestion (37 listings)

Diagnosis Checklist: Associated symptoms your doctor may ask about (and why!)

Sometimes, other symptoms may be present and may help your doctor analyse your condition. The symptoms your doctor may ask about (in association with Indigestion) may include:

• Acid regurgitation? - may suggest gastro-esophageal reflux, or oesophagitis.
• Waterbrash (excess secretion of saliva into the mouth)? - may suggest gastro-esophageal reflux, hiatus hernia or peptic ulcer.
• Pain on swallowing? - may suggest oesophagitis (especially if with hot and cold fluids) or stomach cancer.
• Cough or wheeze at night? -may suggest gastro-esophageal reflux
• Symptoms of angina or heart attack? - e.g. -a common mistake is to attribute the discomfort of angina or a heart attack to a disorder of the gastro-intestinal tract. Must consider heartburn symptoms to be ischemic heart disease until proved otherwise.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Indigestion (37 listings)

Stories from Users for Indigestion

Real-life user stories relating to Indigestion:

• Explosive Diarrhea after eating
• Diarrhea after eating
• Severe gas, cramps; diarrhea after eating
• Shakes after eating
• heat sensations after eating or drinking caffeine
• Recurring nausea and strange indigestion
• Headache After Eating
• Phlegm after eating/drinking..
• Burp after every meal
• Uncontrollable Vomiting after meals (food or water)
• Periodic Diarrhea After Meals
• Nauesa and Indigestion
• lots of symptoms
• distension, gurgling noises, nausea after eating
• stretched after eating. Please help!!!
• Constent belching after eating
• Stomach discomfort after eating
• i dont know if this is what i suffer from
• 4½ Yrs of Suffering!!! DISCOVERY - Have Hope!
• Swelling of Sternum Area After Eating

Symptom specific forums: The following patient stories in our interactive forums and message boards relate to Indigestion or relevant symptoms:

• Gastrointestinal (Food - from entry to exit) (452)
  • Bloating/Distention/Intestinal Gas
  • Intense Abdominal Pain
  • Help Please! Extreme Abdominal Pain/Gas/Bowel Symptoms ++
  • Feels like a baby kicking-not pregnant
  • 7 year old with severe heartburn/stomach aches
  • More user stories
• Musculoskeletal (Muscles, joints and bones) (405)
  • Joint and muscular pain after taking chantix
  • Arm pain after sneezing
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Joint swelling, stiffness, severe foot pain
  • Muscle twitches/spasms
  • More user stories
• Neurological (Nerves) (357)
  • Could this be MS?
  • Numbness and tingling all over
  • Tingling/numbness in arms/hands/legs/face/head [more symptoms]
  • Eye twitch
  • Essential tremor
  • More user stories

Videos for Indigestion

Patient Surveys for Indigestion

• Patient Profile Survey
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• Survey about diseases related to your Indigestion
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Medications or substances causing Indigestion:

The following drugs, medications, substances or toxins are some of the possible causes of Indigestion as a symptom. Always advise your doctor of any medications or treatments you are using, including prescription, over-the-counter, supplements, herbal or alternative treatments.

• Corticotropin
• ACTH
• Acthar
• H.P. Acthar Gel
• Apo-Prednisone

See full list of 184 medications causing Indigestion

Drug interactions causing Indigestion:

When combined, certain drugs, medications, substances or toxins may react causing Indigestion as a symptom. Always advise your doctor of any medications or treatments you are using, including prescription, over-the-counter, supplements, herbal or alternative treatments.

• Alcohol and Advil (Ibuprofen) interaction
• Alcohol and Motrin (Ibuprofen) interaction
• Alcohol and Nuprin (Ibuprofen) interaction
• Alcohol and Aleve (Naproxen) interaction
• Alcohol and Naprosyn (Naproxen) interaction

See full list of 38 drug interactions causing Indigestion

Article Excerpts about Indigestion

Indigestion, also known as upset stomach or dyspepsia, is a painful or burning feeling in the upper abdomen, often accompanied by nausea, abdominal bloating, belching, and sometimes vomiting. (Source: excerpt from Indigestion: NIDDK)

Indigestion, also known as upset stomach or dyspepsia, is a painful or burning feeling in the upper abdomen, often accompanied by nausea, abdominal bloating, belching, and sometimes vomiting. (Source: excerpt from Indigestion: NIDDK)

Definitions of Indigestion:

Indigestion: Nonspecific term for various symptoms resulting from a failure of proper digestion and absorption of food in the alimentary tract.
Source: Stedman's Medical Spellchecker, © 2006 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

A disorder of digestive function characterized by discomfort or heartburn or nausea
- (Source - WordNet 2.1)

Organs affected by Indigestion:

The list of organs typically affected by Indigestion may include, but is not limited to:

• Oesophagus
• Stomach

Detailed list of causes of Indigestion

The list below shows some of the causes of Indigestion mentioned in various sources:

• Abdominal discomfort
• Abdominal swelling
• Achalasia
• Achlorhydria - indigestion
• Adult hypertrophic pyloric stenosis

See full list of 90 causes of Indigestion

How Common are these Causes of Indigestion?

This information refers to the general prevalence and incidence of these diseases, not to how likely they are to be the actual cause of Indigestion. Of the 90 causes of Indigestion that we have listed, we have the following prevalence/incidence information:

• 7 causes are "very common" diseases
• 8 causes are "common" diseases
• 2 causes are "uncommon" diseases
• 0 causes are "rare" diseases
• 10 causes are "very rare" diseases
• 73 causes have no prevalence information.

See the analysis of the prevalence of 90 causes of Indigestion

Conditions listing symptoms: Indigestion:

The following list of conditions have 'Indigestion' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.

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Causes of Indigestion Based on Risk Factors

This information shows analysis of the list of causes of Indigestion based on whether certain risk factors apply to the patient: