Question: Chest pain not from the heart?
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For quite some time now I have been experiancing pain in my chest, it is right under the sternum, when I cough or sneeze it is very painful, the pain spreads across my chest and straight into my back. I have been to the hospital and had a chest xray but they couldn't find anything wrong. I know something is wrong- this is not normal.
Is there anything you can tell me? I would like to find out what the problem is.
Answer:
There are a lot of questions that I would want to ask you about your symptoms below, to help better understand when it started, what triggers it, does it hurt all the time, does it wake you from sleep, does it stop you from doing regular activities etc. But from the brief information you have given me, it sounds like you may have an inflammation along your sternum and ribs called costochondritis.
The definition of costochondritis below, is from the Mayo Clinic website
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/costochondritis/DS00626
Costochondritis is an inflammation of the cartilage that connects a rib to the breastbone (sternum). It causes sharp pain in the costosternal joint — where your ribs and breastbone are joined by rubbery cartilage. Pain caused by costochondritis may mimic that of a heart attack or other heart conditions.
Can't be sure if this is it or not. It is not a bad idea to go to your family physician so he or she can do a physical exam on you, ask you all the right questions about your pain, and be sure that something else is not going on. The treatment for this pain, is usually anti-inflammatory medicines. Over the counter advil, alleve, will work just fine. As long as you do not have any allergies or problems with ulcers in the stomach, you can go ahead and take these as often as recommended on the label. Take with some food so it does not irritate your stomach. You should notice some relief after taking anti-inflammatories for a couple of days. If the symtpoms worsen, change or do not improve, please see your doctor.
