costochondritis I'll give you a lollipop if you can pronounce it :-)

Ok so I feel soo silly, I've been in and out of the er in the past couple of weeks ( sorry for not writing) and the same thing over and over, pain in my chest that would go through my shoulder into my back, it was the worst on the lower left side just inside of my breast. I thought I was really having a heart attack when I went into the ER the first time. After being admitted (what can I say after the whole mis-diagnosed aortic dissection they don't take any chances) and having every test run they said my ejection fraction was a little better 46/48% up from 42/44% and the ekg was abnormal but not anything to make them think it was a heart attack or any further cardiac issues I was sent home. I followed up the next day at my dr's office, my Dr wasn't available and I saw one of her partners who actually said you're still healing, don't worry about pain. Needless to say I thought that was a strange thing to tell someone with cardiovascular disease but I bit my tongue. A week later I was back in the ER, this time they sent me home after about 16 hours, again the echo, ct scan, the whole gamit of tests. Again I followed up the next day, this time I was able to see My Dr. She took one look at me, pressed on my chest and said this is the easiest thing you've brought me in a year you have costochondritis. Basically it's inflimation between the ribs, it can be horribly painful and mimic a heart attack. She said it's not a very common thing but it happens, mostly to people in thier fourties (again I'm 30 people) I said can we tell my body it's too young for all this? she just looked at me said she was sorry and told me to take an anti inflamitory and come back if it didn't get better in a couple weeks. Well it's been the couple weeks, the over the counter stuff didn't do it, so i'm going back tomorrow. I'm just stuck either way I go, before they looked for anything other than a cardiac issue, and now that's all they look for. But like my dr says, chances are the cardiac issues are the ones that could kill me, they have time to find the others.

By WarmNBrace
Posted October 1, 2008 at 9:44 am
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No Lollipop for me...LOL I did a google search and I was impressed what i read. Costochondritis or Tietze's simular but different. I printed them out and this is going with me to my Doct visit. next week.

I know what you mean regarding feeling silly about all the trips to the ER because I just came home from one. What we need to remember it is our lives that could be in danger and with our history.... NEVER feel silly.
Please keep us posted as to your results... and I will do the same after i show this to my Doct next wed.

Feel Better
Marie

By lkay
Posted October 1, 2008 at 9:53 am
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Hi there,
Don't ever feel silly about going to the ER because its hard to feel silly when you are dead! Blunt enough? Its the truth, keep going until they get you settled and figure out what is really going on.

Take care,
Laura

By regalradish
Posted October 1, 2008 at 2:10 pm
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Hi.......
Have not heard costochondritis since I was 26. Yup, I was diagnosed back then with it and treated with cortisone injections into the breastbone. Not pleasant that's why I remember it so much!

There is no way we can fool with chest pain. I have been told on the trips to the ER, never to ignore the symptoms .... better to walk out on my own foot power than being wheeled out to the morgue...

Take care
Marilyn

By kareno
Posted October 1, 2008 at 4:02 pm
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Hi,
Please follow up this diagnosis. I was diagnosed with costrochondritis three weeks prior to my MI in 2002. The ER doctor said it wasn't my heart, after an EKG and one of the heart enzyme tests. I continued to have the pain and other doctor visits before finally having the heart attack. Please get a second opinion, you can't be too careful with this one. Kareno

By martzj
Posted October 1, 2008 at 4:45 pm
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Costochondritis...man, these medical words are sooo long, give me carpel tunnel to type out : )

Hey A......Good grief! And you could be my little sis. A severe bout of costo killed a solid 10 weeks of my junior year in college. The pain was beyond excruciating...had to pant-breathe, couldn't lift my arms high enough to brush my then very long hair in my dorm room. I was sent back to my dorm room with a few days worth of aspirin or something but nothing else for pain and inflammation. Feels like broken ribs that won't heal? I was 19.

Good to hear it wasn't more artery dissection. That has had time to heal evidently. Sorry about the costo sweetie but it isn't life threatening....I had a much milder case in the exact same chest area as a 2nd grader but I didn't tell my parents to avoid a trip to the icky old doctor : )

Have you tried a heating pad or one of those rice filled sacks you heat in the microwave and wrap around you neck while the heat radiates deeply...? Try that on your chest....I did that just this week and it felt nice. I may stick in my bra this winter...will just have to look like I have a third boob : )

Hang in there......
Hugs, Jaynie

By emt96
Posted October 1, 2008 at 5:53 pm
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Hi everyone,

I haven't posted yet but the costochondritis got my attention! I'm 10 months post quad with 2 stents 4 months later. Back in August I woke up with the most excruciating pain when I coughed or breathed deep. I had inhaled some bug spray earlier and thought that was it. I work nights at a hospital so by morning I had the ER doc do a chest x-ray. No problem other that a top wire is broken...lol Cardiac labs ok so I was to follow up with my Dr. After spending 3 weeks talking to my doc through a middle man I was still in pain and ended up back in the ER. This one thought it might be my gallbladder and with my history wanted me admited. The best thing he did was give me a heavy duty pain killer and I was pain free for the first time in almost 4 wks. Fortunately I have been pain free since. I knew it wasn't cardiac. I thought my sternum had come apart. Thank God it hadn't. Thanks for letting me chime in.
Laura B.

By Ecksunbeam
Posted October 1, 2008 at 11:36 pm
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Dear Marie,

I was hoping you would read this thread.

How to make a rice pack:

Get a pair of l-o-n-g mens athletic socks. Dump a 2# bag of rice into one of them. (Dollar Store stuff is fine.) You will have to invent some kind of funnel. A rolled up paper plate works. If you have some kind of essential oil, like Lavender, you can mix a small amount into the rice before putting it into the sock. Tie a knot in the top of sock #1, and then place it into sock #2. Place in microwave for no more than 4 minutes--or it will start to cook. You can also wrap it in a moist towel before putting into microwave. Be careful--HOT! Cozy up. It works great because it takes on the shape of your own body and no worry about electrocution. Also nice for people with neck and shoulder problems (are you reading this Christine?) because you can take it with you. The heat lasts for quite a long time. You might also want to try some Chinese Tiger Balm, but only get it from a Chinese store.

Huggy-huggy,

Sherrie

By WarmNBrace
Posted October 2, 2008 at 9:26 am
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Sherrie,

Yes !! I am right here reading all this. I started using a heating pad the other day but I'm going to make the Rice bag today. I like the Idea you can take it with you. I also have neck problems ...so it will be good for those times as well.

I can't wait to see the Doct on wed so I can ask him about Costochondritis. It sounds so much like what i am going through. If this is what I have ...ok i can deal with it.

On the other hand....... Kareno has me thinking with her post.

Right back at ya with those hugs...
Marie

By Sister4
Posted October 2, 2008 at 9:44 am
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Just a note to be cautious about applying heat only. I'm certainly not an expert, but I do know that while heat might temporarily ease the pain, it may actually cause inflammation to worsen.

Sandy

By Ecksunbeam
Posted October 2, 2008 at 9:56 am
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P. S. These make great inexpensive Christmas gifts. People love them!

BTW--purpose of the second sock is so you can pull it off to wash it.

By nancygrace
Posted October 2, 2008 at 12:43 pm
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I was dx with costo after my 5th baby. I'm wondering how does one know it is costo and not heart related without angio? EKG looked normal so they did not run labs for enzymes at that time (I made 2 emgcy room visits with an 11 day old baby along!)

A year ago similar pain sent me to emgcy room again and they did run enzymes (elevated) though EKG looked normal, and procceeded to angio and discovered a dissection for which I received two stents. In recovery I had similar pain again ( I actually thought I was dying) and it was a completely collapsed artery (spasm) that would not respond to nitro or any other med, so they (thinking another dissection?) took me to cath saw the spasm and ended up opening it with two more stents. I have asked my cardio if a spasm can lead into dsissection but he really does not know.

So (and I've rasied this question elsewhere on the forum several times now) I came away from that experience wondering if my prior costco dx was really either severe spasm and/or healed dissection(s). The similarity of the pain in both episodes amakes me think they were the same things. But costo does seem to have very similar to spasm/dissection pain associated with it from what people here are saying (but is it for sure costo?)

I guess I can never know for sure, but my cardio thinks the costo was actually spasm/dissection since I was post partum at the time and that is a risk factor.

Just pointing out that it may be likely that costo can be misdiagnosed, or that spasm/dissection can remain undiagnosed .

I think one can't know for sure without angio since dissections can heal on their own and spasms can go into remission so that treatment (or dx through angio) is not pursued.

The other question arising naturally from all this, is if dissections can heal and spasm can go into remission or be not life- threatening- then is angio and cath and stenting necessary? I don't know...

It all came out alright for me and I have been doing fine for over a year now.
nancy grace

By Ecksunbeam
Posted October 2, 2008 at 4:43 pm
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Dear Nancy Grace,

Like I've said before, until you very carefully weed out the symptoms it's a crap shoot. No pain or symptom can be overlooked, and if really worried, no, it's not a waste to hit the ER. It's just very scary when it means our lives can be on the line while it's figured out. But no matter how good the doctor, and when more than one thing is going on at once, they cannot discriminate the pain, etc. for us. Chest pain can be caused by many things besides the heart. When someone has all ready been diagnosed with heart disease, it's just as dangerous to assume that's what it is when it could very well be something else just as dangerous--like pneumonia. WarmNBrace seems to have all ready had potential heart problems ruled out.

May the Blessings Be!

Sherrie

By nancygrace
Posted October 3, 2008 at 11:52 am
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To all: I'm also wondering, if the pain could be due to spasm, how is that diagnosed? Spasm can only be seen while it is ocurring during an angiogram right? I guess the other way is to try to medically induce spasm in those persons with the suspicious symptoms, and do an echo (?) to see if it is occurring. But that is a bit risky sounding, and others here have remarked they did not like induced spasms...

So it does seem like it comes down to guessing about the chest symptoms-if one chooses to forego the more invasive diagnostic procedures.

However, now with heart enzymes as part of the diagnostic procedure (which was not routine in those ER trips I made postpartum years ago) there is a better chance of pinpointing heart issues. Maybe it is best to return to ER each time symptoms occur and do the labs/enzymes (b/c EKG can typically look normal) .

When I was diagnosed with costo the doctor pressed on my sternum and asked did that hurt, well I said yes b/c he was pressing pretty hard and my chest felt weak from the pain I had been experiencing, but if he pressed on my sternum right now (no current pain to speak of) I'd likely say yes that hurts b/c maybe I am senstive that way. Maybe there is a little bit of the power of suggestion going on in such a diagnosis too, b/c it feels preferable to walk away with dx of inflammation rather than to face heart issues. It bothers me somewhat to not know for sure what it was, or in future to maybe face the same confusion again.

Maybe I am trying to say to keep exploring the possibility of the heart related diagnosis (to those wondering about spasm vs costo) just to best cover all your bases in protecting your health. Maybe you can ultimately rule heart issues out, but take the most assertive approach in attempting to rule it out.

After I had the costo dx I just kept thinking this cannot be right, inflammation does not knock you to the floor gasping does it....? (Some say it does), but I lived with those doubts and confusion (with severe pain episiodes) for several months before the pain subsided. Since I had the costo dx I did not return to ER for subsequent episodes.

By Angeleyezs1026
Posted October 4, 2008 at 9:59 pm
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Hi everyone! I've actually had costochondritis a couple of times in my life (starting at age 27). What a pain! They had to give me anti-inflammatory medications as well as muscle relaxers (can't remember the name but it started with an "R").

A couple of my nieces had it as well. Of course, being that they were teenagers they healed a LOT faster than I did from it.

It's always a good idea to be seen by a doctor so you know what's going on rather than guessing. They'd rather see you than have you not go and then it could be something worse. Never feel silly about getting checked out. Better safe than sorry!

By bluesea
Posted October 12, 2008 at 10:29 pm
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I have costochondritis, at the same time I was diagnosed with heart disease(five stents now), the same month I was having heart symptoms, I also developed spondyloarthropathy (it took me a year of practicing to be able to say that.) It's a form of arthritis in the rheumatoid family, I call it spondylitis and I've wondered about the timing of the two the same month since it was automimmune.
Anyway the end result is that the costocon. and heart disease symptoms are similar. The way I know now, is if I breathe in through my belly, and the pain stops, it's often the costo. A doctor told me another way of figuring it out but I forget. Breathing makes costocon. worse. I guess holding my breath would be another way of distinguishing it, but I don't know if costoch. is the same for everyone. Massage makes it worse, touch makes it worse when it's flared, and exercise.

My angina was marked by pain in my shoulders and arms...the pain in the chest was the same, and I have had many many days trying like crazy to figure out which I was dealing with. One mg. of prednisone will often make the difference to me and help identify which it is, also.
good luck,
Lauren

By jube217
Posted October 13, 2008 at 8:05 pm
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Alloriea,

I have had the same diagnosis and i can say it (kaustrocohndritis). It hurts REALLY bad! My dr, told me they have no idea how and why people get it. But I have had pain in my chest area since I was a teenager. Sometimes it gets bad and followed with a bump. Heat was the only thing that help alleviate the pain. It supposedly has to go away on its own. Now the cardio was convinced that is what I had about 6 weeks ago, ended up to do the cath and found blockages and ended up with 3 stents. Do not mess with this, if you press on your chest and hurts from pressing IT IS NOT THE HEART!! Stress and worrying also aggravate it. Hang in there and keep us posted!

wishing you the best,
jube :-)

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