Chest pains and other stuff....

[Fluffysmom]

I've been having pains on the left side of my sternum since yesterday.  Before that, I was in the kitchen filling my water bottle, and I had this weird buzzing/tingling in the same area, then a little later on the inside of my left thigh, where I've had such buzzing before.

This pain coming and going in the same spot, right over my heart, basically, kind of scared me, but then I decided to feel between my ribs, and they are sore at that level all the way around.  I'm assuming that my muscle spasms have pulled a rib or two slightly out of place (has happened before).  I tried doing my exercises/stretches on my foam roller, but they didn't help.

I'm wondering if these muscle spasms that pull my ribs out of place are possibly related to the linear lesions that the OHSU neuro-radiolist noted on my c and t spine.  Could this be a kind of " MS hug" thing?

Then last night, returning from the bathroom, my left knee just "went" on me; I could feel the thigh bone sliding over the lower bones; I think the ACL is letting go more.  It was already thinning and wavy.

No big deal, except that immediately after that happened, it felt like I got stabbed in the left SI joint area with an ice pick, and now i'm having some difficulty walking and occasional bursts of nasty pain.  I was already having some trouble sleeping because of increased lower back pain.  I don't neeed more!

Doctor's have said that my disc protrusion and degeneration shouldn't cause as much pain as I describe.  Could some of this be related to the possible lesions?  I say possible lesions, because the other neuro-radiologist thinks that the c-spine ones are actually a near-by blood vessel, I'm not sure about the t-spine one.

As for the chest pains, my BP and heartrate seem to be fine.  I don't think its a heart issue.

Any ideas, thoughts, or suggestions?

Kathy

[Fluffysmom]

Hi, I seem to be fine, though the pains aren't gone.  The Trigeminal Neuralgia Pain got so bad last night that the pain in my chest didn't seem as bad, lol.

My latest MRI report states that in my T-spine "There is at least 1 linear area of increased T2 signal at the T10 level", and in the impression it is called a "lesion...atypical for demyelinating disease ut it cannot be excluded".

I'll have to wait and see what the new neuro says about it, as the report states that is not changed from prior imaging, but it was not noted before, unless you count  the "patchy area " that the previous radiologist noted.  He wasn't a neuro-radiologist, and he's also the one that really did a bad job at my LP.  At least he noted something odd there.

My two neuros that viewed the spinal films said it was nothing.  My dears, that pain is not "nothing"!  The spasms and rib displacement aren't "nothing" either.

I'm heading into town to got to a farmers market, and will be closer to Good Sam, should anything happen to  make me think it's more than muscle/nerve pain.

Right now I'm thinking about how my insurance won't pay for enough Lyrica to treat my TN pain, and thinking about asking my PCP about Tegretol on Tuesday when I see her; I seem to remember Quix saying it's good for TN.

It will be nice to check out the farmers market; my first one this year.  

I'll pay attention to my body, and take care of it, OK?

Hugs,

Kathy

[LLWB]

If it were me, I would go to the better hospital. This time of night, you probably wouldn't be adding a lot of time. How long has the chest pain been going on? My ex had a Triple By-Pass at St. Vincents. Of any hospital I know of, I consider them one of the best. Please let us know how you are, and what you find out. Doesn't this sh*t always happen on the weekend?

Take care
Maggie

[Erin0313]

Kathy,

  Do you have any lesions in your T-spine? I get chest pain and arm pain that feels like a heart attack and have been told that the nerves where my lesion is in the T-spine wrap around the ribs over the heart.

I do have Tachycardia but that's another issue, lol.

Don't mess around because I have grown fond of you and we only have one heart. When you go to the hospital/doctor you can add the T-spine issue to your list of concerns.

Take care and keep us posted

Hugs,
Erin :)

[Fluffysmom]

I thought you wouldn't be on.  I knew you would tell me that I needed to get checked out.

Well, I have this chance to tell you to have a pleasant and safe trip.

If I need to go to the ER, would it be foolish to go and extra 15 miles to a better hospital?  I hate the $50 co-pay, but I am rather attached to my healthy heart, and want to keep it that way.

My PCP's advice nurse told me the same thing about the ER vs Urgent Care.  I thought they worked out of the same place, and were able to have access to the same equipment, but she insisted.

Thanks for stopping in, my heart-wise friend.

Take care,

Kathy

[Lulu54]

Kathy,
I'm running through here on a low-fly trying to pack for tomorrow and saw your post.

You know what I would say ... you only have one heart.  Don't take chances - if it could berelated don't hesitate to get it checked out.

AND urgent care is useless in a heart situation - if they do their job right they will refer you on to the ER where more comprhensive tests can be performed.

be  heart smart,
Lu

[Fluffysmom]

Hey there, thanks for the concern and thoughts.

I hadn't considered esophageal spasms, hmmm.  It doesn't seem like the right area, and there's the rib pain involved.  

I know that heart issues can present in strange ways, especially in women.  If it gets worse, I'll go over to the closest hospital.  I hated my last visit to the ER there; if maybe tomorrow I can try urgent care if it's not better.

I forgot to mention that my Trigeminal Neuralgia is flaring up again; bad pain and zingers in my upper left jaw that my dentist ruled out dental causes for.  It had just barely settled down from the last flare, then it started up again a couple days ago.

That makes me think that my whole left side could be involved in some kind of neurological flare; I'm just recovering from a viral outbreak.  Sheesh!  I got stressed out with all that stuff with my last neuro, and I don't have a new one yet.

Oh well, I know things will work out.  If I do go to the ER or Urgent care, I'll tell them of all three options, and see which direction they go.  :o)

Some of you may remember that when I went to the ER with possible appendicitis (sent there by my PCPs advice nurse), I was told to go home and take and over-the-counter laxative.  It didn't relieve the pain, but I did lose weight temporarily, lol!

I'm sure I'll be fine.  

Kathy

[goofysmom1]

What you describe could very well be an esophagus spasm.  I have had instances where food got stuck midway down the esophagus due to a spasm.  They can be very painful and scary.

I am not dx'd either, and these spasms started abruptly along with my tingling/burning sensations in my left arm...

Esophageal spasms are not very well understood & are notoriously difficult to treat.  It took trying 3 different medications before the 3rd one finally offered some relief.  I still get them, but they are not nearly as debilitating.

As for a correlation - well a GI doctor that I saw for a 2nd opinion would only say that esophageal spasms could be part of another disorder (rather than strictly just a GI problem) - but because I was in the middle of testing for my neurological symptoms - he would not go any further.  I have always wondered if there is a correlation between my GI issues and the neurological issues - since they began at the same time...

Chrisy

[CheeserNurse]

I think I have what Chrisy is explaining-the esophageal spasms....the more I think about it, one of my very intense symptoms is the difficulty swallowing, and with that I get (on occasion) pain in my chest, not usually intense, but it is scary, but it won't last long, but more than anything when it happens I feel like an object is stuck in my throat (globus), and sometimes I feel like I'm about to vomit, like my throat is trying to bring food back up, and I know I do NOT have real heartburn, but when that happens, it will sometime leaving a sour taste in my mouth...I"m not yet Dx with MS, but wondering if there is any correlation here...

thanks for posting this!

[PastorDan]

I'm with Chrisy.  It's probably nothing to worry about, but you can't know until you get it checked out.  Yeah, I know, it's Friday night, but I'd rather mess up my Friday night for something that turns out to be nothing than to find on Saturday morning that I wish I had.

[goofysmom1]

I am sorry you are having a tough time!  We have discussed GI issues before - and I know that when I first began having chest pain - I thought it was possibly heart related...it really scared me!

I have esophageal spasms (I take daily meds for them) and they are mostly under control.  Could it be an esophagus spasm?  Esophageal spasms are often mistaken for heart problems.

If you have any reason to suspect that it is heart related - go see a doctor ASAP.  You don't want to take a chance.

Chrisy