Upper back pain to chest pain...

I'm feeling a little nervous, but don't want to overreact...
For weeks I have been feeling a constant hurt in my upper back area like I have been hit across my back with a 2x4 along with a relatively sharp pain between my shoulder blades, but slightly to my right side. I have been dizzy and nauseous for pretty much the same amount of time. I have trouble sleeping, but when I do, I feel like I can sleep for days at a time. I'm not feeling more fatigued than normal, but I am feeling a pressure in my chest that I was not feeling before. I have been feeling like I can't take a full breath, but in actuality, I can. These have gotten progressively worse over the last day or so. Here's the catch....I had recently been diagnosed with Melanoma on my back and just had surgery 3 weeks ago. I have a 6 inch long, and 1/2 inch deep wound on the right side of my back that has healed nicely. My stitches were removed a few days ago. Needless to say, my back has had a recent trauma and I'm not sure if my body is just recouping from the trauma and I'm overcompensating for my injury or if these "symptoms" should be of concern to me for a possible much bigger issue. I'm sure there is truth to my overcompensation, but my concern is that I was nauseous, dizzy with pain between my shoulders BEFORE my surgery. I've read that heart attack symptoms can be present for a while before it happens. Can anyone point me in a direction? Any advice would be appreciated...

By yarnkitty
Reply 3319534
August 25, 2012 at 2:35 am
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You can start with your primary care doc. Make sure to emphasize you had it before the surgery. Start the description with the chest pressure, nausea, and dizziness then the back pain. If you have sudden worsening of symptoms, go to the ER. With your melanoma, there may be other things in the differential to check out. Good luck.

By Jurzygurl
Reply 3319561
August 25, 2012 at 3:29 am
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Thank you so much! I appreciate your response to my long, drawn out question. Perhaps the stress of the last few weeks is contributing to what I'm recently experiencing...

By special85
Reply 3319942
August 25, 2012 at 9:33 am
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I'm with Yarnkitty on this one. Get to your primary care doctor and do not contribute it to stress. Too many women have done just that and have gotten into big time trouble.
Special85

By doctorphobe
Reply 3320066
August 25, 2012 at 10:20 am
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stress, aka "nerves " is the catchall for all things female...i even blamed my pregnancy symptoms on nerves....oh it's nerves made me miss my period......duhhhh...riiighht.

By cali_2012
Reply 3320512
August 25, 2012 at 1:10 pm
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You are describing the same symptoms I had before my heart attack in Nov. last year . Go to get a catherization to find the blockage before you have a heart attack. The damage done to my heart was extensive. I am 58 years old and had to retire. I had a pacemaker implant 4 weeks ago. The blockage was the LAD (widow maker) artery ,so I'm lucky to be here. Careflight and my doctor saved me. I would say the dizziness is key to saying it's your heart. If nothing else ,let them rule this out. I did not think at the time it was my heart, because 5 months prior I had a stress test that said I was okay. This stress test was just my yearly one , not because I had any symptoms. So I delayed calling the ambulance. Because I had a good stress test and I did not have chest pain.Ten years ago my mother had a heart attack and her pain was also between the shouder blades. The same with me. Please get checked out soon. God Bless.

By Blossoms (Inactive)
Reply 3320537
August 25, 2012 at 1:21 pm
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Hi,
Dittto what Cali said. I had the same symptoms also but the pain in my back, across my shoulders, is something I forgot all about because I never connected it with my heart attack. The dizziness and nausea, yes. I keep saying I had a 'no pain' heart attack but keep forgetting what transpired weeks before it happened. I also had recently gone through an excellent (They said) stress test, no problems. they were dead wrong and, had I listened, I would have just been dead.

So, I totally agree with everyone on this board and feel that you should not be embarrassed by your concern (I always am!), just do it!!

By cashmere8
Reply 3321201
August 25, 2012 at 6:44 pm
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I am experiencing the same symptoms as we speak pain between shoulder blade and I do have a hard time breathing, and constant dizzyness,and that's due to MVD micro vascular disease diagnosis back in May, prior to that In February I called ambulance, when they came I told them I had pressure in my chest pain in my back, upper back, story short 8 days in the hospital with nitros and all kinds of meds, and an angiogram that was clear, was sent home with acid reflux meds Protonix, did nothing to my upper back pain chest pressure/ discomfort, as I said still there, and soon as nitro start to ware off I feel the pain coming on again, so please listen to all the above and get checked, btw I do not have GERD, it is my heart. I take Isosorbide Dinitrate, 30 mg sublingual nitro spray at will , and transdermal 0.6 mg. I hope you will find the cause soon. Please let us know.

Sonia

By bannya
Reply 3322543
August 26, 2012 at 11:15 am
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hi - agree with all of the comments. I just changed cardiologists and he too stated back pressure/pain upper back/between shoulder blades is a cardiac symptom that gets missed or discounted. I do get this pain on occasion and it is easy to confuse with musculoskeletal symptoms. I have a great physio who also works on the muscle side of things. You really have to be your own best advocate - good luck and see your primary.

By bannya
Reply 3322546
August 26, 2012 at 11:16 am
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By yarnkitty
Reply 3322649
August 26, 2012 at 11:53 am
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The back pain/pressure does get missed a lot in terms of cardiac symptom. That's why I suggested presenting it last and saying chest pain first. Doctors often don't listen after the first few words you say, so it's important to have an attention grabber up front that will get them going down the right path.

By cashmere8
Reply 3323238 · In reply to 3322649 by yarnkitty
August 26, 2012 at 4:33 pm
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Its true yarnkitty, in the hospital one of the nurses said to me" these are chest pains" even now I still get confused about my pain as there are other chest /neck/shoulder pains as well.

By muhorstman
Reply 3324993
August 27, 2012 at 11:01 am
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Get to your doctor and request a stress, dye and if needed heart cath test. Then and only then can you rule out your heart. I had back pain and thought it was from a neck injury I have a few years before. I also, had sweating during night and only twice had pressure on my chest in the previous 6 months. Doctors always chocked up to pms, neck etc., so I have been walking around with blockages in two major arteries and now I am told I am not even a good candidate for by-pass surgery.

By MaryLG
Reply 3325205
August 27, 2012 at 12:28 pm
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http://myheartsisters.org/2012/08/27/prodromal-symtoms-pre-heart-attack/

Our super knowledgeable heart sister, Carolyn Thomas (kennarina) posted this link just today. Perfect timing. Now, hope you do go to a good cardiologist (preferably female or female oriented) and take this print out and your posting. I think it says it perfectly. Don't wait. Do it today. Seriously. Today. I would skip over the primary, but that's just me.

Big hugs! xoxo Mary

By MaryLG
Reply 3325206
August 27, 2012 at 12:30 pm
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One of the fastest ways to get mis-diagnosed is to lead with your own doubt and minimization. Don't express that. Your doubt gives a doctor an out to pooh-pooh you. Been there, done that. Wasn't smart.

Best, Mary

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