Question: I have a tear in my right pectoralis major from what seems to be several sternal origin points that runs all the way down to the bottom of my pectoral. There is a stringy, tendon-like chord running down where the tear stops about halfway to the middle of my chest. Some muscle fibers have also spilled onto my sternum where there once was just a natural gap.
I am also healing from a costochondral seperation that is causing my rib to stick up very slightly at its origin point to the sternum. This occasionally aggravates the tear itself since the rib is directly above the tear.
My range of motion varies from day to day. I cannot make forceful movements with with my arm without soreness and some burning in my sternum area, and standing or sitting upright sometimes causes painful tension in my affected rib cartilage and in the tear.
I have consulted multiple medical professionals about these symptoms and none of them have been able to give me any answers as to how to treat this injury. Month long periods of rest have not helped it heal at all, and the physical therapy I have done sometimes made it worse. Does this injury sound like it needs surgery? No other methods have been able to help it heal the tear nor the costochondral seperation, and it only gets worse with time.
A picture of the tear when my right pectoral is contracted is provided below. The underdevelopment in my other pectoral is genetic, not related to the tear.