Use Intermountain Connect Care®
Learn More.
Your abdomen, also called your midsection or belly, is the part of your body that contains your organs including your stomach, small and large intestine, and liver. These organs are protected by the abdominal wall, a layer of tough tissue under your skin. On the inside of the abdominal wall is another thin layer of tissue called the peritoneum [peh-ree-tohn-EE-um].
Peritonitis [peh-ree-tuhn-EYE-tis] is a condition where the peritoneum becomes inflamed. This is usually caused by an infection from bacteria or fungus, but can also be caused by fluids leaking into your abdomen from other organs like the liver.
Usually, peritonitis is caused by an infection that gets into your peritoneum because of a rupture (rip or tear) in the abdominal wall. Some other types of peritonitis can happen even without a rip are:
The symptoms of peritonitis can be different from person to person. The most common symptom is a lot of pain in your abdomen that gets worse when you move or if someone touches you there. Other symptoms include:
Peritonitis is usually caused by an infection in the peritoneum that makes it inflamed.
This infection often happens because of a hole in the digestive tract. Your stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and colon process food and drink, turning it into nutrients and waste products. These organs also safely digest bacteria that can cause infection. If one of these organs has a hole in it, the food or waste can leak out into the other parts of your body like the peritoneum, making you sick.
A hole in your digestive organs can be caused by:
Other causes of peritonitis include:
If your doctor thinks you have peritonitis, they will do a physical exam to look for symptoms. During this exam, they might also ask you questions about your medical history, including:
Sometimes, your doctor might need to do more tests to check for peritonitis and rule out other conditions that can have similar symptoms. Some of these tests include:
Treatments for peritonitis include:
You can lower your chance of getting peritonitis by taking steps to avoid situations that could cause injury or infection to your abdomen. Some of these include: