Non-Cardiac Chest Pain

[mrpoetry]

A patient began having fluttering in the center of his chest after eating dinner.
Weeks later the flutter continued. He walked in to the ER with crushing pains
in the center of his chest behind the sternum. An EKG showed nothing
wrong. Chest X-ray was clear. No pulmanary embolism. He had a treadmill
stress test the following day reavealing no blockage. 4 enzyme test show
no cardiac infarctive activity. Patient released and had uppger GI showing
only a mild sliding hiatal hernia. Bearing in mind the chest pain has not gone
away in 4 months and only happens at random. Sometimes after meals and
after drinking ice cold water. Patient claims they feel like the middle of his
chest is popping out and at the same time feels like the bottom is dropping
out. The feeling is only described as chest kabumps. Sometimes a few in a row and but mostly once in a while but a few times a day. Doctors are
perplexed. This is a case I can't make heads or tales of.

[ed34]

When you've had the procedure, can you please let us know how it went and if it gave you the relief you expect? This is very interesting and I really wish you every success and future pain relief.

[mrpoetry]

I am the one suffering through it. On March 31st, I have an appointment with my
doctor who believes its my stomach going to my chest through a hole in my
diaphram. They found a sliding hiatal hernia on my upper GI test. Their is
hiatal hernia surgery that can be done laproscopicly which is less time in
hospital and quicker recovery time. I was told by my doctor this week that
when the stomach slides into the chest cavity, it irritates the vagus nerver
which aggrevates the heart. I can't wait to have that surgery, 4 months of chest
pain will be gone,
God Bless

[ed34]

When in hospital very recently, a chap in the bed opposite me had a hiatal hernia and he seemed very surprised that I knew what it was. He was stented due to chest pains and an angiogram found a blocked artery. However, he still suffered the same chest pains with the hernia. He said it's a real problem in his life because of the discomfort it causes, and the amount of heartburn it produces. I've not done any research on this, but he stated there is no surgical treatment for it? I think chest pains are very common for this type of hernia.
I have to say, I would have thought surgery would be possible, to pull the stomach back through the diaphram and make the hole too small for it to pop back through? Anatomically, I don't know how close the stomach would be to the heart when such a hernia exists, especially when a build up of gas occurs.

[vienna13]

Interesting post.  Sure our body is very sensitive for everything. And because our Heart is the most important part of  our body, we worry the most of it well being, our mind easily making up tales about it dysfunction. Those are very often just self made up wrong diagnoses.

  Look alike heart disease symptoms are often  there and NOT because heart disease is there! Often it is only cardiac neurosis people having. But I personally cannot blame them.