sporadic severe pain in chest, back & jaw, what can it be?

[ljs083]

I have been reading what the previous members were expiercing, and I have been having the same  exact symptoms, to a"T". They are very sporadic, but extremely sever pain in the chest and upper back and jaw.  I don't know what causes it, but when it starts you can not stop it.  It last between 5 to 30 minutes and when its gone, you feel fine.  I have rushed myself to emergency room three times,thinking I was having a heart attack.  They do the normal tests, say I'm fine and then send me home.  Does any one have any ideas what this might be?????

[gidget1967]

Hi, I am new at this and just joined today, but have had the same symptoms. I have GERD and take Protonix for it...however, I still will have those episodes where it starts in the center of my chest and runs up my jaw and into my ear; sometimes when its really bad I feel it in the middle of my back and swear it has to be a heart attack! This will happen without exertion, whether sitting, standing or talking. I have done the treadmill, ecocaadiogram and multiple EKG's to no avail.
I have a ton of stress in my life right now (like most people these days), but know this is not a panic attack. So my GP wants me to go back to the cardio doc and check for Mitral Valve Prolapse again...ugh! Or perhaps it's just stress is so significant our bods are saying slow down?  Please let me know if you find anything out and good (health) vibes coming your way. Gidget

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

Your symptoms are typical symptoms of an anginal pain but it has already been ruled out in your case. Many other disorders produce chest pain or discomfort. Some (e.g., acute MI, unstable angina, thoracic aortic dissection, tension pneumothorax, esophageal rupture, pulmonary embolism) are immediately life threatening. Some (e.g., angina pectoris, pericarditis, myocarditis, pneumothorax, pneumonia, pancreatitis, various thoracic malignancies) are potentially life threatening. Others (eg, gastroesophageal reflux disease [GERD], peptic ulcer, esophageal motility disorders, costochondritis, chest trauma, biliary tract disease, herpes zoster) are uncomfortable but usually not dangerous.

As cardiac causes have been ruled out in your case,So other causes need to be probed. Please elaborate on what side of the body is the chest pain, is it accompanied by any other feature like cough, blood in the sputum,palpitations,weight loss and what is the character of the pain?I can help in a better way then.

Hope it helps.Take care and pls do keep me posted on how you are doing or if you have any additional doubts.