Pediatric chronic abdominal pain: an ongoing challenge

Abstract

Chronic abdominal pain in children is a common clinical challenge for pediatricians. It requires a thorough and meticulous evaluation, focused on identifying a positive diagnostic entity based on symptoms, with the necessary rigour to rule out organic diseases in an appropriate manner, using clinical and laboratory elements for each individual case. Functional chronic abdominal pain is a disorder of the brain-gut axis, with clinical entities framed by the Rome IV criteria, and results from the dysfunction of this axis at its different structural levels. This update reviews current concepts on the biopsychosocial and multidisciplinary approach to coping with this disorder, as well as individualized therapeutic approaches for each patient, in accordance with the best possible evidence on pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions.