long term problems following suspected pericarditis and mycoplasma infection

[wazza]

Hi there

I was diagnosed with percarditis in July 2004 it came on very suddenly although I had severe nausea about 4 hours prior to it occuring and I experiencing some shortness of breath a couple of days before hand on my daily run which was very uncommon and had not happened in the 10years that I had been running I was 26 when this first started. However I was placed on strong pain killers as I was in tremendous pain and still are to this day and the pain has never change in the way it feels nor in its location which is directly under the left breast and sometimes radiates into the left shoulder. I have had several tests which show the actual function of my heart is perfect, however my heart is rather large for a person of my size I'm only quite small and slim. Anyhow the ecg all showed pericarditis and the cardiologists thought the pericardium looked slightly thick in one area. A specialist gp I'm seeing now ordered an MRI which he believes shows some adhesions right in the area where I describe the pain coming from. To touch the left side of my chest it does not hurt and to push on my left rib cage it does not hurt, this pain feels very deep and feels like I'm being stapped and I have an elephant on my chest so great pressure. The pain is made worse from any form of excercise that raises my heart rate, or any situation that causes me anxiety. I also noticed the pain gets worse in hot wheather and at night time. Can you offer me any further suggestions I have had just about every test under the sun including bone scans which came back fine. Thankyou so much.

[monkeyflower]

I have a former coworker who developed pericarditis and had pain like what you describe. They gave her prednisone, which helped the pain but caused problems of its own. I don't know much about other treatments aside from surgery, which I think I'd probably choose as the very last resort. Have your doctors given you anything for your anxiety, so you don't have to deal with that on top of everything else?

[wazza]

HI thanks for responding yes my doctors have given me some medication for anxiety which I think helps keep me sane despite all the pain, I was on predisone for months along with anti inflammation medicine and another one that starts with a c. I think the problem with me is now adhesion pains the worse is the fact that I'm so young and you can not see the problem and i feel as though sometimes people think I'm putting this all on to get attention or something they forget how I used to be a dedicated long distance runner, uni student and worker, I'm not lazy and would give up almost anything to have my life back without pain, can anyone else relate to this.

[JoAnnaRF]

I suffered a back injury followed by a failed back surgery and am now in Pain Management which I have been in for about 18 months now. I am 36 (yikes 37 next week) and have 5 children. I know our conditions are different but suffering with chronic pain is a miserable exhistance and I can totally relate. You feel like you have become a burden with becoming dependent on those who used to depend on you. Your entire life as you knew it is like a dream. And the nightmare you are now faced with can be very depressing. I am not trying to feed your sadness, just to let you know that I can relate. And also, coming here, to this site, and trying to help others with whatever little tidbits of knowledge I have gathered in being a woman, wife, and mother helps me A LOT!! It gives me something purposeful to do. I am no longer able to work as a medical asst. and am permanently disabled. So this is a way to try to help others and at the same time, help myself. If you find that those around you are less than understanding, then you need to seperate yourself from those that may doubt the validity of your illness. You need to be around those that are supportive and helpful as you undergo treatment and adjusting to the life you now have. It is vital to keep the negative forces away and keep only the positive. Afterall, don't you have enough negativity going on right now? And if needed, take the doubters to a doctors appt. and let them see first hand what is going on and have your doctor's explain to them that just because they can't see the ailment doesn't make it any less real. If you offer to take someone along and they refuse then simply tell them that you don't want to hear another word about it from them unless it is something positive and supportive. You have to take care of yourself right now and can't be bothered with the worries of IF someone believes your pain is real or not.
I hope a bit of empathy has helped. I wish I could do more for you.
--J

[MishaT]

I can understand exactly how you feel. I'm only 18 and in April of 2007, right before my graduation, I began to get pains in my chest and back. I told my parents, (my father is a radiologist) and they didn't understand what could be wrong with me. Sometimes the pain brought me to tears.
I worked in the same clinic my father does except in the finance department, and the pain became so overwhelming one day I began to cry, but the deeper breath I took, the more pain came. I went straight over to medical and they ran an ekg and other tests on me. They said everything seemed fine with my heart, except for one little blip on the report. They found I had scoliosis which could've been most of the reason for my back pain. They gave me a shot of taradol, which is an anti-inflammatory and sent me home for the day. They referred me to a cardiologist, and they performed an ultrasound on me... That's when they discovered I had pericarditis. They gave me a prescription of teradol. The pain hasn't been so bad recently. It flares up every now and then, but I too was an athlete. I loved to run. I'm just barely getting back to exercising. I'm trying yoga now to help with my back problems.

The whole time I was sick, many people thought it was for attention, but I can honestly swear that was the worst pain I've ever endured in my life... I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

I wish you the best of luck with everything :)

*M

[mdavisr]

On Feb 3, 2008 I woke up with severe chest pains. My chest felt empty and like someone was standing on it! I called my primary care physician (I was home from work with Strep throat at the time) and he instructed me to go to the ER.
At the ER they ran 5 different EKG's, did chest X-Rays and took a lot of blood. About 4 hours into my ER visit the pains started to increase. From all the test they ran and the symptoms I was having it appeared that I was having a heart attack and they rushed me off for an emergency heart catheder.
I thougth that this was CRAZY! I can't be having a heart attack. I'm only 32 yrs old and I'm in great physical condition. I usually do high intesity workouts 6 days a week for an hour a day. (weights and cardio)
Well, I was right. the heart catheder showed that my arteries looked great. To quote the Dr. ,"I had the heart of a tri-athelete."  So what was happening to me?
Two days later I was diagnosed with Pericarditis. I was sent home and given a 5 day prescription of ibprofin. (equivalent of 9 per day) The chest pain and fatigue has never completely gone away but I seemed to be improving a little each day.
On March 6, 2008 I decided I would attempt to do a light workout. For about 15 minutes I did some push-up, pull-ups, sit-up, etc. At the end of the 15 min my heart was racing faster than ever....This should have been like warm up for me. I decided that I probably rushed back into working out too fast and should wait before doing anything again.

The next two days I felt like I was still improving a little each day. On the third day, March 9, 2008, I woke up with sever chest pains and despite having a good night sleep was extremely tired. It was like I was back to day one. I slept about 8 hrs out of the day and had no problems going to sleep that night.

I don't know if I caused this by working out or if I'm having some type of relapse.
How long does this normally last? Is it normal to have good and bad days like this? Is it common to relapse? Any suggestions or advice is appreciated.

MD

[ireneo]

Honestly, it sounds like your pericarditis isn't under control yet. I don't see where they gave you any antibiotics, just the ibuprofen for inflammation. Considering you had strep I wonder if it might be lingering in the heart tissue. Have they done any follow-up with your heart yet - an echo, EKG, even a simple x-ray? What about blood work - white cell count? Please check back in with your doctor on this one. Take care.

[ireneo]

An extra note - information on another medical site says most cases clear up in 2-3 weeks. Doesn't sound like yours has done that.

[trishtrash]

I have the same problem as yourself.  Pericarditis not clearing up.  I've been on and off prednisone for the past four months. As I right this I have severe stabbing pain under my left rib, shoulder pain has temporarily disappeared but I had it yesterday.  I agree with you, if someone takes a knife and stabs me in the heart and shoulder blade, I'm sure it wouldn't feel any different than the pain I have right now!
I am no closer to any solutions... only that I have an appointment with a homeopathic doctor who works MAGIC and I am confident that he'll get to the bottom of this.  They test at a biochemical level. and give you just the right minerals, substances that your body needs in very precise quantities.  ALSO, a friend of mine who had pericarditis experienced much relief after visiting a homeopathic doctor.