Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Urology (Expert Forum)
constant pain through out my ribs
Answered by
Kevin Pho, MD - Internal Medicine
KevinMD.com
Questions in the Urology forum are answered by Dr. Stephen Liroff, affiliated with the Henry Ford Hospital. Topics covered include benign prostate disease, penis curvature, cystisis, kidney stones, pediatric urology, prostate, sexual dysfunction, urinary tract infections (UTI), and urological cancers.
constant pain through out my ribs
by P63, Mar 11, 2003 12:00AM
I have constant pain through out my ribs. At night after I am in bed approximately three hours the pain gets so severe I can not rest. It starts in my right side and goes across. I try to pack pillows around me so I can get some rest but nothing helps so I end up getting up. I have not been able to rest for months. The pain is a throbbing pain and goes from the base of my ribs to my shoulder blades. I have had
bilateral rib ex rays, upper GI, pelvic ultrasound, an echo cardiogram and nothing has shown. The pain continues to get worse. I would appreciate any help you can give me.
Doctor's Answer
by Kevin Pho, MD, Mar 11, 2003 12:00AM
, Mar 11, 2003 12:00AM
Hello - thanks for asking your question.
You are describing rib pain and normal x-rays, upper GI, pelvic ultrasound, and echocardiogram.
Always consider cardiac (angina, pericarditis, aneurysm, dissection etc.), pulmonary (pleuritis, pulmonary emboli etc.) and GI (gastritis, dyspepsia etc.) causes - you seem to have undergone the appropriate tests. I will discuss some other causes of chronic chest pain.
Chest wall - Musculoskeletal chest pain is often insidious and persistent, lasting for hours to weeks. It is frequently sharp and localized to a specific area, but may be diffuse and poorly localized. The pain may be positional or exacerbated by deep breathing, turning, or arm movement.
Rheumatic diseases — Involvement of thoracic joints in rheumatic diseases can be associated with musculoskeletal chest wall pain. Examples include rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and fibromyalgia.
Nonrheumatic systemic diseases — Several systemic disorders are characterized by bony involvement that can lead to chest wall pain. Examples include stress fractures, neoplasms, and sickle cell anemia.
Pleuritis/serositis — Pleuritis is an inflammation of the parietal and serous pleura of the lung. Viral pleurisy is a common cause of pleuritic chest pain in young adults. Other causes include autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus or rheumatoid arthritis.
Options that you may want to discuss with your personal physician would be a chest CT and a workup for rheumatological causes of pain. A referral to a rheumatologist or neurologist would be reasonable.
If the pain is determined to be musculoskeletal in origin, a referral to physical therapy may help.
Followup with your personal physician is essential.
This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.
Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.
You are describing rib pain and normal x-rays, upper GI, pelvic ultrasound, and echocardiogram.
Always consider cardiac (angina, pericarditis, aneurysm, dissection etc.), pulmonary (pleuritis, pulmonary emboli etc.) and GI (gastritis, dyspepsia etc.) causes - you seem to have undergone the appropriate tests. I will discuss some other causes of chronic chest pain.
Chest wall - Musculoskeletal chest pain is often insidious and persistent, lasting for hours to weeks. It is frequently sharp and localized to a specific area, but may be diffuse and poorly localized. The pain may be positional or exacerbated by deep breathing, turning, or arm movement.
Rheumatic diseases — Involvement of thoracic joints in rheumatic diseases can be associated with musculoskeletal chest wall pain. Examples include rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and fibromyalgia.
Nonrheumatic systemic diseases — Several systemic disorders are characterized by bony involvement that can lead to chest wall pain. Examples include stress fractures, neoplasms, and sickle cell anemia.
Pleuritis/serositis — Pleuritis is an inflammation of the parietal and serous pleura of the lung. Viral pleurisy is a common cause of pleuritic chest pain in young adults. Other causes include autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus or rheumatoid arthritis.
Options that you may want to discuss with your personal physician would be a chest CT and a workup for rheumatological causes of pain. A referral to a rheumatologist or neurologist would be reasonable.
If the pain is determined to be musculoskeletal in origin, a referral to physical therapy may help.
Followup with your personal physician is essential.
This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.
Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.
