CAUSES OF CHEST PAIN OTHER THAN HEART ATTACK

Whenever someone experiences chest pain the first preconceived notion or assumption is the fear that it might be a heart attack. And also, for years chest pain has been attached to heart attack and fortunately or unfortunately that other causes remain hidden which needs to come to the forefront!

As it turns out, there might be causes of chest pain other than heart attack and few of them are listed below:

• HEARTBURN: Heartburn or a burning sensation felt at the chest due to acidity of gastric attacks are also a cause of chest pain.
• PANCREATITIS: An intense abdominal pain in pancreatitis can radiate up to the chest and be a cause of chest pain.
• ACID REFLUX: The most common cause of heartburn and all chest pain is gastroesophageal reflux disease. It is a chronic digestive disease where stomach acid flows up into the esophagus, causing irritation, which can be more painful after a meal.
• COSTOCHONDRITIS: Aninflammation where a rib bone meets up with the cartilage causes chest pain that is mistaken for a heart attack.
• MUSCLE STRAIN: Pushing and pulling heavy objects like furniture, vacuuming and even doing twistedyoga poses (when you aren’t quite flexible enough) can strain muscles in your chest wall and cause discomfort. It’s possible for someone to mistake a strained chest muscle for something more serious, like a heart attack.
• BREAST CYSTS: Chest pain may actually be breast pain, in some cases. Fluctuating levels of the hormones estrogens’ and progesterone during a woman’s menstrual cycle can cause “fibrocystic breast changes,” or breast cysts which are painful.
• PNEUMONIA OR LUNG ABSCESS: lung infections can cause pleurisy and other types of chest pain, such as a deep chest ache. Pneumonia often comes on suddenly, causing fever, chills, cough, and pus coughed up from the respiratory tract.
• PERICARDITIS: It is an inflammation of the sac surrounding your heart, usually causes sharp pain that gets worse when breathe in or when one’s lay down.
• GALLSTONES: Gallstones can also be a cause of the chest pain.
• SHINGLES: a reactivation of the chickenpox virus, shingles can produce pain and a band of blisters from your back around to your chest wall.
• ANXIETY OR PANIC ATTACKS: Panic attacks or anxiety and stress can also induce chest pain.
• PULMONARY EMBOLISM: This cause of chest pain occurs when a blood clot becomes lodged in a lung (pulmonary) artery, blocking blood flow to lung tissue.