Abdominal pain in pregnancy: who needs to be admitted? Admissions in a district general hospital in one year

Summary

This is a retrospective study of all pregnant women between 20 and 37 weeks admitted to a district general hospital in one year with a presenting complaint of abdominal pain alone (for example, with no bleeding). The outcome of the admission was correlated with important symptoms and signs present at admission. Most patients were never diagnosed. No harm would have been done if those patients with no uterine, other abdominal tenderness or loin tenderness, had not been admitted, unless other features such as peritonism or a positive urine culture were present. Pregnant patients with abdominal pain do not need to be admitted routinely if a proper assessment is carried out. Those who do need admission are identifiable at their first presentation.