Jaw, chest and arm discomfort when exercising

[Jangel]

I am a 43 yo woman; I do not drink or smoke, am about 25 pounds overweight. Up until 1 year ago, I exercised 4-5 times a week regularly. My cholesterol is a bit high - 209 but the HDL is excellent at 60 so my Dr says not to worry.

About a year ago I started getting chest, upper back, shoulder and jaw pain. I noticed that the jaw and arm pain in particular seemed to be more prominent about 10 minutes into exercising. I had a stress echo which was normal. Pain is on and off, both with and without exertion. Forward to Summer... the discomfort while exercising seems more prominent again. Went to a second cardiologist for a 2nd opinion and had another stress test. All results were normal.

Again, I notice a pattern of right sided jaw pain within 15 minutes of exercise that would diminish within 30-90 minutes after exercise, especially while on the recumbent bike. Some arm pain too.
The cardiologist was somewhat concerned and I had a CT angiogram last week. She said it was completely normal - no plaque and no calcification - my heart is in excellent condition.

She seems to think it is either musculoskelatal or neurological in origin. I do have herniated discs in my cervical spine (c4-5 and c5-6) and do have alot of neck pain. Although the neurosurgeon thinks that left-sided herniation can possibly mimic cardiac-like symptoms, even when exercising, the Orthopedic Dr doesn't think the herniations are causing the problem.

Other health problems are hypothyroidism and migraine.

My question to you is: does having a normal CT angiogram completely rule out a cardiac cause of this pain/discomfort? I am relieved that my cardiologist thinks so, but without an adequate explanation as to the cause of the discomfort, I still have a bit of anxiety.
Thank you.

[MaryLou1027]

Has anyone ever said that you might have cardio micro vascular disease.  This is not picked up by Echo or CT scans.  It appears mostly in women and is under diagnosed as studies on women and heart disease are still in it's infancy.

[Cleveland Clinic]

Given the extensive nature of you non invasive testing, and the fact that your symptoms are typical for exetinal angina and not explained fully by an alternative diagnosis or resolved, I would proceed with a diagnostic heart catheterization. This will be the definitive test as to whether or not you actually have obstructive heart disease. And they could also perform an ergonovine stress test to test for prinzemetal's angina, which although not typical based on your symptoms is still in the differential.

[Jangel]

I forgot to add that I have strong family history of heart disease - my father passed away at 58 after triple bypass surgery.