All day today I’ve had sharp shooting pains in the side & bottom of my ribs mostly on the right side. The pain makes me jump it’s so bad then it’s goes away. . My ribs are tender to touch too. Does anyone know what can be causing this pain?
I’ve put an ibuprofen gel on my ribs had paracetamol & Gaviscon.
I'm so fed up. Can anyone advise if they have ever had these shooting pain & if so how do I get rid of it?
Thsnks
Possibility???ostochondritis, or Tietze’s syndrome, is another common cause of rib cage pain.
This condition is characterized by inflammation of the cartilage in the rib cage. It usually occursTrusted Source in the cartilage that joins the upper ribs to the sternum, an area called the costosternal joint.
Rib cage pain due to costochondritis ranges from mild to severe. Symptoms include tenderness and pain when touching the chest area. Severe cases can lead to pain that radiates down the limbs, or pain that interferes with daily life.
Some cases of costochondritis resolve without treatment, while others require medical intervention.
Rib pain can be really annoying. In between each rib there are nerves that run from the spinal cord to the front. There are two of them. And there are nerves outside the ribs too. If there is any inflammation around the ribs then these nerves can become irritated. There are lots of muscles and tendons too. We think of the rib cage as rigid but it is actually quite flexible and can move. This is probably what the shooting pains are, the nerves getting irritated and triggering.
So there could be some inflammation causing this, and the inflammation could be caused by all sorts of things including injuries, strains, sprains, that sort of thing.
So anti inflammatories are a good thing to try, but I assume you have already tried ibuprofen? Heat can help too, as can cold. It is a personal thing, worth trying both to see which works.
And rest. Try not to replicate the pain by those movements, which I know from experience is easier said than done!
Hi Gilly 61, the reply posts are good I am in a similar position I have a terrible pain in the right rear rib region , if I cough it hurts but because I take pain relief for arthritis the level of pain etc is masked. I have other health issue so they could be the cause also. Have been referred for an Xray but I have another appointment for that day so had to cancel and ask for a new appointment to be sent. So I guess I will have a long wait for another date due to the staff strikes planned for January. But there is no way I can be in two places at once unless I fork out lots of money for taxis. So I wish you every best wish for a speedy diagnosis
Thank you for your reply. I to have had a chest xray & ultra sound on my stomach all come back normal. Hope your x ray goes ok whenever you get your appointment!
Thank you, I got an appointment today for the second but can't go has I have another appointment same day what we call sods law. But they will sort it out as its what is called a diagnosi s test so fingers crossed another appointment will come after Christmas.
If this is new or newly-noticed for you and you are somewhere with this high wind I'd suggest inflammation of cartilage as a result of overactive mast cells. Mast cells can be triggered by all sorts of things and windy weather affects some, me included. One of the many inflammatory chemicals released, tryptase, is cartilage degrading and has also been associated with osteoarthritis med.stanford.edu/news/all-n.... I have permanent low-level ribcage pain. When it is really windy like now I get shooting pains and also suffer from insomnia, nausea, headaches, general unwellness, joint pain and ear cartilage pain as well as the ribs being worse. Quercetin is a natural antihistamine and mast cell stabiliser which I find helps me, also extra vit C, lots of fresh ginger, parsley, and I use aspirin although some find it makes things worse rather than better. You could try an antihistamine and a low histamine diet and hope that when the wind eases the pains subside. But if not somewhere windy and nothing else to trigger then best seek advice.
Thank you for your reply. That’s very interesting
You are welcome. The wind is still high here and I've added most unpleasant back and hip pain to my list......The longer it goes on the more symptoms I get, every time. And the stabbing pains are usually first, for me, even before I know the weather is changing, like a bizarre barometer (pressure dropping does the same for me, as do MRI scans....). You might find this interesting too - and mast cell dysregulation to some degree is common with autoimmunity (as the mast cell is 'first immune responder' - ours just aren't sure to what extent and when to respond) lymedisease.org/severe-weat...
You could possibly have pleurisy which is an inflammation of the lining around the rib cage. I've had it and it hurts to breathe. From a Google search: Pleurisy is inflammation around the lungs, which causes sharp chest pain. It's easy to treat and usually gets better in a few days, but can sometimes be a sign of something more serious, like pneumonia.
Have a look at SRS syndrome. I have hypermobility in my rib cage which is causing so much rib pain. The worst is front low right rib ares. I use a hot water bottle. A dynamic ultrasound is one of the only ways to check for SRS I have my scan in Feb. Hope you find out what is causing the rib pain however its taken me over 2 years to get the DU on the nhs.
Shooting pains in sternum
Chest and breast pains
Rib pain - fibro or something else? 
Chronic back/nerve pain no answers as to what it is :(
