Small, pea sized knot below sternum

[Cam1015]

I am a 26 year old, white male in real good shape. I recently found a small, pea sized knot below my sternum in between the top four abs, directly in the middle. It moves very little while running my finger over it, but pretty much stays stationary. It has not given me pain while sleeping or exercising. What may this be? It has concerned me a bit, but I thought maybe it was a muscle knotting up.

[LivingInHope]

Perhaps they've seen something like what you described before and that's been their experience as to what it was.  And of course, they would have excellent knowledge in the subject of the musculoskeletal system and the anatomy of that.

I suspect if it were a muscle knotted up, you would feel some soreness from that.  

But, if you are concerned it might even be something else other than what the retired surgeon suggested or what you mentioned, you might want to measure it for height, length and diameter and check it again at  regular intervals to see if the thing is growing.  If it does grow, I'd definitely recommend going to your physician with your recorded measurements with the dates you measured.

[Cam1015]

Yes it was. A retired orthopedics surgeon.

[jemma116]

The xiphoid process of the sternum is the lower part of the sternum also called the breastbone that projects down. The xiphoid process begins as a piece of cartilage and it  slowly hardens into bone.  By middle life, it is usually fused to the body of the sternum.

It usually remains a separate bone until middle age or later, when it fuses to the body of the sternum.

I asked my doctor about this when I was your age and he told me it was the Xiphoid (I hadn't heard of it before then).  I find mine is always very tender when I touch it.  

Hope that explains things more clearly for you.

[LivingInHope]

Was it a doctor who guessed?

[Cam1015]

Yeah its a harder lump at the end of the xiphoid process. I was told that may be what it is, just the process itself, but I have my doubts. It is below the skin, not a skin tag.

[LivingInHope]

So it is a hard lump, not like a lipoma?  Is it an epidermal nevus, a skin tag, is it more than skin deep? If you have no symptoms with it, I think you'd be best off having a doctor take a look at your next regular check-up.