Costochondritis is chest wall pain caused by inflamed cartilage located where your ribs and breast bone meet. Costochondritis is often aggravated when you inhale and exhale deeply. Pain may also be present with pressure. The cause in many cases in unknown.
Irritated bands of muscle can result in aches, spasm, or tightness which can lead to pain over a remote area. This phenomenon is known as referred pain, caused by “trigger points” (irritated muscle bands) can often times can cause chest pain.
Post Herpetic Neuralgia is a condition that can develop after an outbreak of “shingles.” Symptoms of the condition can include chronic burning pain of the chest and other areas. Pain in most cases is isolated to one side of the body.
Chronic intractable angina is a condition where chest pain is caused by severe coronary artery disease that cannot be treated with cardiac interventions or cardiac medications. Your Cardiologist can diagnose this condition.
The symptoms of Fibromyalgia include chronic widespread pain, including arm pain, associated with debilitating fatigue, difficulty sleeping, difficulty with bowel function and a variety of mood problems including cognitive dysfunction, anxiety and depressive symptoms. There are no diagnostic tests to diagnose Fibromyalgia.
There are many peripheral nerves in the chest that can cause pain if they become inflamed or compressed. The most common nerves are the intercostal nerves under each of the 12 ribs and spinal nerves exiting the thoracic spinal canal.