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Published on: 4/28/2025

What Might Be the Reasons for Experiencing Pain on the Left Side of the Body Only?

Pain happening only on one side of your body may be due to differences in how our body feels pain or because of a condition affecting structures on that particular side.

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Explanation

There are a few possibilities as to why pain would show up only on one side of your body. First, our body may have lateral asymmetry, which means that the left and right sides can feel pain a little differently. Some people may naturally have more sensitivity on one side. Studies have found that people with chronic spinal pain sometimes report more pain on the left side, and the differences might even be linked to how our brain processes pain signals. Another reason might be related to an injury or health condition that starts on the left side. For example, while appendicitis is usually on the right, some rare cases of left-sided appendicitis have been reported, showing how conditions may sometimes appear on the opposite side than otherwise expected. In chronic pain, other issues like muscle or nerve problems can be more active on one side because of differences in how we use and move our body, or even how our emotions and psychology affect pain. If you have persistent one-sided pain, it’s a good idea to visit a doctor who can help find the cause and suggest the best treatment.

(References)

  • Akbulut S, Ulku A, Senol A, Tas M, Yagmur Y. Left-sided appendicitis: review of 95 published cases and a case report. World J Gastroenterol. 2010 Nov 28;16(44):5598-602. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v16.i44.5598. PMID: 21105193; PMCID: PMC2992678.

  • Dydyk AM, Conermann T. Chronic Pain. [Updated 2024 May 6]. In: StatPearls [Internet].

  • Göbel H, Westphal W. Die laterale Asymmetrie der menschlichen Schmerzempfindlichkeit [Lateral asymmetry of the human pain sensitivity.]. Schmerz. 1987 Sep;1(2):114-21. German. doi: 10.1007/BF02527738. PMID: 18415557.

  • Wasan AD, Anderson NK, Giddon DB. Differences in pain, psychological symptoms, and gender distribution among patients with left- vs right-sided chronic spinal pain. Pain Med. 2010 Sep;11(9):1373-80. doi: 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2010.00922.x. Epub 2010 Jul 27. PMID: 20667025; PMCID: PMC2972385.

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