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Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ?

Are there tests that can identify chest wall pain caused by inflammation, etc.? I started...

Posted by SFL234

Are there tests that can identify chest wall pain caused by inflammation, etc.?

I started having left-side chest pains about a month ago. I went to the clinic the morning after experiencing them the previous night. I had no chest pains at the time or during the course of the day. After describing my symptoms, they hooked me up to an IV, administered a nitro pill, which dropped my blood pressure to 70/35 (scary - I don't think they expected that). Then they loaded me into an ambulance for a trip to the hospital (I think that was CYA, which is fine).

At the hospital, ~9:30am, they hooked me up to an EKG, drew blood for Troponin tests 90 minutes apart, and scheduled a supine exercise-bike stress echo test afterward (with EKG, BP, ultrasound, and I think some kind of dye was injected in the IV). All tests came back negative and they discharged me around 5:30pm.

I went back to the urgent care clinic two days later because the chest pains persisted. A quick EKG, BP, oxygen, and temp test came back normal. The urgent care doc thought it might be chest wall pain and advised an increase in ibuprofen.

The chest pains subsided after a week, but haven't gone away. My primary care physician believes it's anxiety and prescribed Zoloft. The Zoloft (.25mg) has made me more anxious in the first couple of weeks, but a Xanax "crutch" for when I need it seems to offset those feelings. My chest pains aren't as prominent, but they still occur. I know anxiety can cause them, but I have a hard time buying into that when the chest pains occur at 2am while sleeping or out of nowhere when I'm not really worrying about anything.

I think the tests they performed at the hospital, plus wearing a prior 24-hr Holter monitor, are a pretty strong indication that it's not heart-related. However, I'm more inclined to buy into chest wall pain or something else compounded by anxiety than believing anxiety is causing the chest pain. Some doctors have stated that a coronary angiogram is the gold standard for ruling out heart conditions, but based on my previous test results, along with my information below, nobody thinks that's necessary, and I don't really want to do it, either. But, it would be nice to know if there are non-invasive tests that can tell me what it is instead of just knowing what it's not.

Age: 42
Sex: Male
History: no family heart issues
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 170
Active runner (2-4 miles/day). Exercise doesn't worsen the pain.View Thread

Posted bySFL234

10 Replies | Reply | Watch This DiscussionReport This| Share this:Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ? Are there tests that can identify chest wall pain caused by inflammation, etc.? I started...

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Reply: Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ?

Thanks. I'll look into those. Some doctors have already recommended yoga and even...

Posted by SFL234

10 Replies | Reply | Watch This DiscussionReport This| Share this:Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ? Thanks. I'll look into those. Some doctors have already recommended yoga and even...

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Reply: Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ?

A doctor in CA tends to agree with the anxiety diagnosis, but mentioned costochondritis or...

Posted by SFL234

10 Replies | Reply | Watch This DiscussionReport This| Share this:Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ? A doctor in CA tends to agree with the anxiety diagnosis, but mentioned costochondritis or...

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Reply: Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ?

Sorry to hear about that, but glad you got it figured out. My full day of heart-related...

Posted by SFL234

10 Replies | Reply | Watch This DiscussionReport This| Share this:Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ? Sorry to hear about that, but glad you got it figured out. My full day of heart-related...

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Reply: Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ?

I had another chest x-ray, which ruled out pericarditis after asking about it. I think I've...

Posted by SFL234

10 Replies | Reply | Watch This DiscussionReport This| Share this:Chest Wall Pain / Anxiety ? I had another chest x-ray, which ruled out pericarditis after asking about it. I think I've...

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