severe chest pain/ shortness of breath

[krashking82]

I am a 24 year old male.  I used to work at wal mart as a full time cashier.  After about a year of cashiering I started getting chest pains and shortness of breath that would not go away. The harder i worked the worst they got.  I even had one day where It got so bad I couldnt breath and about passed out.  I went to the see my doc and he said to start taking iron.  well I'm still getting chest pains and shortness of breath when I do alot of work and movement with my hands and arms.  I'm completely lost as to what's going on and I'm kinda frightened. I've been trying to research it online but I cant even find anything.  My girlfriend's step mom is a nurse and she cant figure it out either.  Anything would help. Thank you. Brad

[Forum-M.D.-MM]

Hello,

I am sorry to hear about your symptoms. Not knowing why you are having symptoms like this can be quite scary.  From experience I can tell you that symptoms like this are often very difficult to figure out why you may be having them.  If I saw  you in clinic, I would start with a history and phsyical exam, an EKG, and possible an echocardiogram if there was any questions about structural heart disease.  Chest pains and shortness of breath is usually not heart disease in some one your age, but it is important to make sure that you aren't one of the few that does.  I am not sure why they recommended iron unless blood tests showed that you were anemic -- and if you were, the more important question is why are you anemic.

If you don't think your doctor is answering your questions or is not giving your straight answers, it may be time to see another doctor.

I hope this helps.  Thanks for posting.

[lionne_sg]

Just wondering...if you drink a glass of water when the pain starts, does it lessen for a while? If it does, the problem could be esophageal reflux disease.  It can hurt very fiercely and even cause dizziness and breathlessness.  In any case, your doctor should do some tests to see what is happening. Has the doctor done any tests at all other than blood work?  Is he/she having you take iron because you are anemic? Have reasons for the anemia been explored?

[krashking82]

ya i was put on iron and I did an iron test the other day and it turns out my iron levels are too high now.  I'm not taking much iron at all either.  I havnt had any blood test or anything done and even when I drink water, it dont have any effect unless I lay down or recline.

[heart sick]

I also suffer from chest pain and shortness of breath I think the shortness of breath is because it hurts to breath deeply. I went to the ER because I thought it might be a heart attack because the pain feels like it is coming from the heart. After blood preasure and a ekg the DR's decided that it is cotacondritis. In easy terms inflamation (inflammation) of the chest wall I have had it for about a month it does get worse with alot of arm movement or lifting. they say it can last a long time. You might want to ask your DR if you have it they will put you on motrin... I hope that is all your problem is and not your heart...

[krashking82]

I'll have to ask them about that. For a while I thought it was a big dose of smoke I inhaled when I was on the fire department but it still comes and goes even now. so I figured it wasnt that. I've had the problem for a good year so far.  when I start to feel it coming on I gotta lay down and quit what I'm doing otherwise I get to the point I'm fighting for air. I'm not sure if this has anything to do with it either or not but every now and then I started to get dizzy or everything would just go foggy or I'd just plain black out and be picking myself up off the floor a few moments later.  Thank you for the help. Brad

[garnet87]

I am 38 yrs old and have the same problem I recently had a stress done and also had some nuclear medicine done to the heart as well and mine results showed that mild attentuation over the distal anterior wall and apex on stress images whis larger and more prominent on resting images it also said there is a small defect in the inferolateral wall that is much more prominent on resting images as well it showed the findings are consistent with attentuation artifacts. In North Dakota on the 28th of November of 2002 I was diagnosed with High Blood Pressure when I was 33 yrs old shortly before that I had developed chest pains on the left side which started in the left shoulder area then radiated down the entire left side of my chest to which it hurt to breath when I got to the hospital they gave me nitroglycerin twice when they couldn't find anything wrong they sent me to another hospital for nuclear testing on my lungs nothing there it wasn't until another trip to the hospital that they did a CT and found that I had pleurisy which wouldn't show up on the x-ray or could be heard through a stethoscope. My husband swore up and down that whole week that I had a heart attack.

[rep74]

have you ruled out anxiety?  i had pretty much the same symptoms when i was in law school.  after two specialists and a cardio work up, my GP figured out it was stress.  the symptoms were so pronounced at times, tho (especially before it was diagnosed).  i had so much trouble catching my breath i would get dizzy, and chest pains that would keep me up all night.  

[caregiver222]

It is not possible to give a diagnosis via an interest questioning board, however the word" chest pain" does not convey much information. Physicians perform "differential diagnosis", and a key part of that process is a thorough and complete exploration of the nature of the pain. There are always exceptions to "rules", however in GENERAL cardiogenic pain, arising from ischemia to the heart muscle is NOT POSITIONALLY RELIEVED. It is generally rather consistsnet, often substernal, often in the left shoiulder or arm (but rarely in the right arm). Pain in the side of the chest, that is sharp, is usually (but not always) non-cardiogenic in origin. I am concerned about the shortness of breath (air hunger). There are many possibilities, some not very serious and others more serious. You need to keep a pain log. Don't tell me in this bulleten board, but if you are on birth control medications these can cause "clots" to form that can travel and block a main blood vessel into the lung, which could cause every one of your symptoms. These clots will eventually become absorbed, but they can be life threatening. Mind, I am NOT providing you with medical advice in the place of an examination by an M.D. I think your problems have not been taken seriously enough. If you have another episode call 911, and have them run you into an emergency room. You are not going nuts. You do not have psychiatric problems. And you do not necessarily have a life-threatening problem. You do need a proper work-up, preferably in a teaching hospital.

[bshack]

Hey how are you i read your problem and i had the same thing happen to me accepted i worked at lowes full time and had to quit working plez read what i wrote and look it up on what i had its a very serious matter! my name is Brandon and i did have wolff parkinson white syndrome im only 22 and had the surgery in 2004 and the reason i knew i had it are listed here. all kinds of chest pains sharp, heavy, painful and all over my chest area. also in both arms very sharp pains down the middle, numb fingers, hands, body. heart flutters, skip beats. my eyes would play tricks on me, i would break down and cry, couldnt breathe, fast heart rate, jus all around weird pains through out my body. not to scare you at all but its good to have symptoms because you know something is wrong sense there are cases of people having what i had and didnt have any and then died? your either born with wollf parkinson white syndrome or the most common ages to get it are between 20 and 35 im not trying to scare you at all jus giving you the thought and also at first the docter told me i jus have anciety well dont take the first advice you get talk to several doctors sense this is a serious matter. THANKS and i wish you well GOD bless you and everyone that i could help thanks again Brandon!    my email is ***@**** if you have any ?s thank you and i wish you the best GOD BLESSES!

[krashking82]

well I havnt had any chest pain for a few weeks now.  It's kind of a relief. Maybe it was just the tension at wal mart dealing with all the customers and the long hours.  after i quit wal mart the chest pains didnt get as bad but were still there, maybe because when I felt them coming on I slowed down on what i was doing a little bit, i dont know.  while the chest pains and shortness of breath were happeneing, I could be standing somewhere feeling great and all of the sudden I'd get dizzy and weak and then everything would just go black.  Then a few seconds later I'd be picking myself up off the floor.  Could this have anything to do with my chest pains and shortness of breath as well?

[alison62]

A related discussion, severe pain left side of body was started.