I was always getting a strong dull painful aches in the left side of my chest. I went to a and e a few times, it was always the same answer that it was indigestion. On the last visit the hospital made an appointment for me to have ct scan of my chest. Waited 3 months for the answer which was a telephone call form the cardiologist to say the a had a congenial condition which I was born with, it is called a mycardial bridge, which I never heard of before. I ask him if it was the cause of this pain and he yes. He prescribed me some medication for the high blood pressure which was caused by the by myocardial bridge and the, stating I should feel better.
A week later was back at the hospital with chest again, had blood test ecg has usual every normal he said, then he ask me if it is indigestion no I stated to him I have been diagnosed with mycardial bridge so that must be the cause, after that he said he will put in a appointment for me to have an ultrasound scan. So now I'm just waiting for the letter to come so I can get to the bottom of this continuous chest pain. Is there anybody else with this condition who can relate to this.
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Thanks for your reply, from what I can gather it is not that common so I will have to wait patiently from other members with this condition. Thanks again
hi I have what you have and I promise to respond tomorrow morning as I should be asleep now not looking at iPad 🤭 but as Hidden said search on the words myocardial bridge you’ll see posts and some links to research.
And yes a symptomatic bridge is rare so a warm welcome to a very small and lonely club 😉
I have this condition and I am led to believe it is rare (especially a symptomatic bridge, as fishface says). I am no expert but what I have learned is that it's not a very well known condition even among cardiologists. My experience so far has been that all symptoms have been blamed on the myocardial bridge by some cardiologists , whereas one dismissed it as totally irrelevant. I am sure fishface will be able to add more but do follow the links provided above for more info. Welcome to the rather small club
My myocardial bridge (MB) was discovered last year when it spasmed and triggered an NSTEMI. This was found through an angiogram. As a result, I now also have something called vasospastic angina.
MBs in most part, are considered benign, as others have said. An MB is a congenital heart defect where one of the arteries tunnels through the heart muscle instead of sitting on the top or surface of the heart. A majority are not symptomatic until later on in life. Unfortunately, there are a few of us that are such as Hidden and myself.
Medication is almost always the first line of treatment for MBs, and I can see that you are currently taking some. It can be difficult to treat MBs with medication as some do not respond to medication and have to take the surgical route. I am currently on Verapamil, Tildiem, Aspirin, Trimetazadine and a GTN spray. Keep in mind though, my medications vary because I have vasospasms as a result of the MB, not everyone experiences this with theirs.
The surgical route for MBs is known as unroofing surgery. It is not commonly performed in the U.K. This is mainly because MBs remain a niche area as you will probably find out and therefore, not many medical professionals are knowledgeable about this which doesn’t always help our treatment or care plan. Unroofing is almost always the last resort however, recently, there are a few hospitals and surgeons in the U.K. who have come onboard to perform these surgeries. I have a list of these hospitals if you would like them. Although unroofing is a possibility, you must discuss this with your cardiologist first who may want to try other methods first.
My symptoms from my MB are daily chest pain, which can radiate to my upper back, both arms and sometimes my jaw. I also experience migraines, sweating (cold sweats), heart palpitations, and abdominal discomfort.
There is a very knowledgeable doctor who specialises in MBs based in London. I can also provide his details if you would like. On the other hand, you can also join this Facebook group linked below which is based on MBs. There is a lot of information on there, including other people’s experiences with their MBs which you might find useful and some medical literature on this.
hi tos92 thanks for you reply. I have written to fishface it's a long reply so take a peak thanks alot
hello Tos92 has covered it.
The difference with me is I have been cleared of vasospasm and microvascular issues and the bridge is the cause of my angina by process of elimination plus confirmed at an angiogram in Jan 2023 with dobutamine/ IVUS which seems to be the “gold standard” test for bridges.
I have a bridge on my LAD that at its deepest is 24mm with the average bridge being 1 to 10mm deep. Mine has been shown to cause blood flow restriction which causes my angina symptoms.
Despite several repeated attempts, Medication hasn’t worked for me (I’m asthmatic and so they won’t give me beta blockers which tend to be first line medical treatment plus calcium channel blockers). Nitrates are contraindicated for bridges and I was told not to use GTN spray as would make worse. A cardiologist who dismissed the bridge early on gave me isosorbide mononitrate which was aweful.
Surgery has been ruled out recently due to the particular anatomical nature of my bridge.
So I am without medication or surgery as an option for the bridge.
I had already been on blood pressure tablets and atorvastatin before diagnosis and then clopidogrel, lansoprazole.
I have angina symptoms within few metres of starting to walk from sitting / lying down and increases in intensity dependent on what I then do, just simple daily personal stuff. Stairs are a killer.
I get chest tightness, heaviness and gripping / squeezing pain plus breathlessness and then I’ll get headaches, dizziness and sometimes feel nauseous. After all that and if that wasn’t enough I get tiredness and fatigue🤓.
Exertion is main trigger, but emotional triggers don’t help. I have a pounding heart beat that I can feel vibrating through my chest, neck and head and you can see my clothes vibrate - bizarre but real, docs just ignore it.
I only get full relief if I stay lying down (except for pounding heart) my target heart rate is to stay at 60bpm which is near on impossible if I want to live a normal life. I can be 70 to 80 while sitting.
one of the positives for you is you have a cardiologist that has early on acknowledged your bridge as a cause.
Cardiologists vary in their knowledge regards any condition but for bridges it’s difficult to find ones that are knowledgeable and take it serious. Others dismiss it. But bridges don’t cause the same symptoms in everyone, nor to the same extent and the way the bridge affects the artery can be different. Some will also have microvascular issues, spasms, endothelial dysfunction alongside and /or because of the bridge. It’s a complex condition without a proven and universally held diagnostic protocol or treatment plan. There is a trial and error element to treatment / diagnosis.
This research / article covers a lot, it has some really good tables for diagnosis/treatment:
thanks for the information it's a lot to take in. I have done a lot of reading on the condition and joined the Facebook bridge support group. We all have something in common, and I can relate to a lot of what I've read and of other people experience , initially with doctors,drugs and symptoms. One thing that I've read about the unroofing procedure. I am waiting for a for a ultrasound don't know when I will get that you know what the NHS is like. I feel a dull heavy pain and feel some squeeze going on and up in shoulder, the thing is it every day and sometimes the shoulder feel hot.
With all the reading I have done, I wonder if im suffering from angina. The symptoms sounds that could be a possibility, at the moment I am taking tildiem 90 mg prolonged release tablets, one in the morning and one before bed. It has lowered my blood pressure but has not stopped the dull ache pain I get every day. I was diagnosed in February so every new. And my ankles are a little swollen which is a side effects of the mess. I was reading about the specialist in London sounds interesting, I think it is worth considering just to get all the proper test done, so I have everything in black and white even my gp did not know what is was,I had to sit down and explain to him what it was. and what I am suffering with me having a bridge. As you know with the appointment you only get 10mins to explain what the reason is for you visit.
That's why I think it is something to consider going to London to see the speclist, got no time to waste with the NHS .i will have to get some funds together to do it. From I read there are quite a few test you have to go through, I have only had a ct scan and waiting for a ultrasound don't know when that will be. There are other test I should be having but they failed to mention that to me. So you see what I mean with the cardiologist I have not even met him just spoke on the phone I only got the that appointment because I was going a&he often for chest pain and the doctor said he will writ a letter to the cardiologist so still waiting. Sitting down writing this suffering with chest pain,I am so fed up with this condition,
Knowing I have a heart condition which is rare is a lot to take in. I have not even shed a tear yet. I might go to a and e tomorrow it's been going on a while now. But I will get the same answer when take bloods and do a ecg to come back to say that everything's normal. I know my reply is long but you have something in common so you understand what goes on. I will be interested in some names and addresses of the speealist that deal with this condition. I could go on writing but I'm going to get something to eat. Im glad you replied to my letter. Will it be ok to write to you again.
I experience the same pain that you mention on a daily basis as well, where you state that you feel the squeeze up into your shoulders. Unfortunately, as you’ve probably read on the Facebook group which I attached earlier, this can be a common symptom of myocardial bridging.
As Hidden explained, people can suffer from other conditions related to the bridge in the form of vasospasms (which is what I have), endothelial dysfunction, and microvascular issues. You may be experiencing some of these yourself but you will not know until you’ve had further testing, specifically the dobutamine challenge with the IVUS.
You mention you are on Tildiem, which is a calcium channel blocker. There are other calcium channel blockers such as Verapamil, so it’s often trial and error with meds until you find the ones that work for you. Some people with MBs also find that an addition of a beta blocker helps. However, these can be contraindicated and need to be approved by your cardiologist first due to increasing chances of bradycardia as calcium channel blockers already reduce the pulse rate.
I’m happy to hear you’ve made the decision to see the MB specialist in London. I will message you his details and the hospitals which are currently offering unroofing at the moment.
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