re update on chest pains.

[lizzylomas]

For those who may remember that I posted about having chest pains way back in June. This week I went in for an angiogram and was told there is no blockage in my arteries but that they went into spasm while the dr was in there!

Apparently 2% of people with angina have this vacuospastic type and need drugs to treat it. A huge relief to me to know whats happening inside me! I asked if it could have any connection with my FM because I get muscle spasms in my back but he hadn`t heard of any connection. I would be interested to know if anyone else has this in addition to their FM. Keep well and warm, sending love to you all.

[Akasha72]

hi, I posted on a blog this morning about something called Costo Chondrosis. According to my GP it is linked to Fibro and causes chest pains similar to symptoms of a heart attack at it most severe.

All it is is the chest wall muscles going into spasm but it makes the lungs hurt and takes the breath away and is really scary.

It maybe worth looking into

Akasha

[sue57 in reply to Akasha72]

I've googled this as well and what I thought was a heart problem is indeed caused by costochondritis!! I was stunned! I'd had these weird feelings, especially in my back, for ages, but my GP reassured me that my heart was fine and it was a muscular thing directly associated to fibro!! Is there anything this dreaded fibro DOESN'T affect??? XX

[Jackie005]

My teenage foster son has had M.E. for 4 years but it was only diagnosed last year.

3 times early last year I took him to A&E suffering from horrendous chest pains and severe difficulty breathing, he had all the tests EEG/MRI and Xrays, all came back as 'normal' since being diagnosed with M.E. we now know that the pain was due to panic attacks.

He's been in the most awful 'flare up' since last October spending almost every day in bed or resting on the settee, continual chest pains has been severe but eased by Gavaston tablets. Thankfully since starting part-time at College he's now showing signs of improvement. His College are really supportive and very knowledgable regarding CFS/M.E. and have recently put him into Counselling which has helped him tremendously.

I don't suppose this helps anyone but it does help to share the horrid painful and very frightening symptoms of this awful illness.

Wishing you all peaceful and pain free week.

Jackie

[Larke]

I have been diagnosed with costochondritis and fibromyalgia. the majority of my pain is from the costo. It is the swelling of the cartilage that attaches to the sternum and ribs. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costo...

It is VERY painful for me. It often feels as though I'm having a heart attack. Though of course after a barrage of tests, no heart issues were found. The pain I have is indeed from the costochondtritis.

When it is really bad, it feels as though someone has their thumb pressed against my sternum as hard as they can without relief. Or as though someone has taken a sledgehammer to my sternum. My ribs are so sore and tender it's as if someone has kicked them repeatedly.

Worse is when I lay down. It feels as though my chest is splitting apart. As if someone has reached in from above and put their hands in to pull my chest apart. Yeah, it's that bad. Sometimes simply breathing is nearly unbearable.

I take the usual Fibro meds, but it's the Nucynta that helps with the costo pain. I am not pain free, ever, but at least I can get comfy enough to fall asleep. Long story short, you can read about all this on my blog (click my username here to see my profile).

BTW, having costochondritis with fibromyalgia is fairly common. The severity of pain will differ person to person, of course.

[Kirby]

Since being diagnosed with fibro, I have wondered if the excrutiating chest pains I've occasionally had are costo. But they only last a few minutes but when they do it is like a heart attack or how I imagine one to be, like a vice across my chest, I can't breathe in, any movement causes intense pain and have waited for it to pass. Whenever I've told docs about it they've not come up with anything consistent. One said it was a muscle spasm.