Rib pain

[Crochetty]

Does anyone have rib pain ?i have reduced down to x2.5 prednisone and have been ok but lately have rib pain feels like bruising

[PMRpro Ambassador]

I do - probably referred pain from nerves being pinched by tight back muscles in my case.

[Buzybe in reply to PMRpro]

I also have rib and neck and shoulder pain and I am down to 4mg. My GP thinks it is nerve pain, but I saw a chiropractor and he said not.

I am not sleeping well, and even have aches down neck , shoulder and left arm. I get a sharp pain in my rib if I turn over in bed, and pain killers are ineffective.

I have been on steroids since July 2020 and wonder if there will ever be an end in sight.

Has anyone tried massage or acupuncture to relieve symptoms?

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Buzybe]

I use therapeutic massage - part of the physio offer at the local hospital, as well as manual mobilisation of trigger points - and find it very beneficial even if sometimes you feel worse before you feel better. If you have myofascial pain syndrome either of those techniques will release the inflammatory substances in the fascia and trigger points - and you can feel as if you have a PMR flare until they are flushed out of the system.

[Buzybe in reply to PMRpro]

Thanks for that my symptoms feel more like mayo facial pain than PMR.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Buzybe]

One group in Aus consider there is a strong pathological links between the two - something a German guy lectured on at a seminar in innsbruck some years ago and it really hit the spot for me. He never wrote it ap and published though

[piglette]

I had Costochondritis which was pain at the bottom of my ribs on just one side. It was extremely painful and I used to try not to breath which was a bit difficult! It just went away again though.

[SheffieldJane]

I have intermittent rib pain that mainly hurts if I lean on the arm of a sofa/ chair. Not sure what triggers it. It only hurts with pressure and it feels muscular ( left side). It is one of the 101 things I haven’t consulted my GP about. Let is know if your mystery is solved.

[scrambledegg]

I have rib pain when I breath if I’ m on too low a dose of prednisolone

[RoadTrip]

I had rib pain when on medium pred doses for GCA. Pain was both sides and ribs sore to the touch, and was constant rather than changing with breathing. I mentioned it to doctor in telephone conversation, he was uninterested, could hear his shrug over the phone, suggested it could be Costochondritis, although symptoms were different.

Others in older posts have mentioned “PMR hug” with rib pain which just comes, then goes. In my case I also wondered if it was due to GERD and PPIs problems. Pain, which at times was really bad, just seemed to go. Touch wood has not returned for months.

[CarolF1312]

When I started tapering down from 7mg I started having rib pain, as my Pred dose is wearing off. I posted a similar question a few days ago.Seems like a few of us have similar symptoms. I'm fine most of the day but can feel stiffness coming on in the evening.

[Nightingales]

Rib pain has always been one of my symptoms. They are always tender to touch and aching when I walk a while. I got some relief with steroid injections into the intercostal muscles on one side and higher doses of Prednisolone. I also uses a rib support like you can buy for fractured ribs sometimes when they are really bad.