Causes of Abdominal swelling (6F's)
1. Fetus: Pregnancy is an important consideration for abdominal swelling for two major reasons. First, scanning radiations can be harmful for fetus. Second, treatment options can have drastic effects on a growing baby. 2. Fat: Fat can indicate several causes for abdominal swelling like increased BMI. It needs to carefully dealt with. 3. Faeces: Either an obstruction like cancer or reduced bowel movements like with opioid use or severe dehydration can all add upto constipation and can eventually cause abdominal swelling. 4. Fluid: Fluid can rise a more pathological suspicion as it could be because of liver (eg: cirrhosis) or kidneys (eg: nephrotic syndrome). Blood accumulation can be more acute with splenic rupture and requires emergency intervention. 5. Flatus: Flatus can be the outcome of bacterial infection or by an obstruction (eg, volvulus or severe constipation). 6. Flipping big mass: This one refers to organomegaly like hepatomegaly from cirrhosis, polycystic ovaries, PKD, bladder enlargement due to urinary retention or intussusception.
