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Flu,bronchitis,chronic Cough,right Chest Pain,hurtful Taking Deep Breath
Question: I just got over the flu about a week ago. I got better a couple days later but then was diagnosed with bronchitis. It gave me a chronic cough which I still have, and I'm still coughing up stuff. I can deal with the bronchitis, however, my major problem now is that my right chest is in pain. It's a sharp pain... it hurts when I take XXXXXXX breaths, especially hurts when I cough, and also hurts from basic movements. The pain is strictly in my right chest, however, I'm unable to press anywhere on my chest/ribs and locate the pain. I'm quite certain it's nothing like pneumonia since I feel completely fine other than coughing and the chest pain. What could this be? Something as simple as a muscle pull from all my coughing which will heal on it's own, or should I be more concerned?
Hi,
Thanks for your query.
Since you have had a history of bronchitis which causes a chronic persisting cough, I would relate the chest pain on the right side as the effect of the cough.The condition being called as Costochondritis which is the inflammation of the cartilage and ribs/bones in the chest wall,causing chest pain due to repeated overuse, it is commonly seen around 20 to 40 years of age and cough following a viral fever, respiratory infections,etc being the causes.
Since you also do not have any other significant history like fever, expectoration at present during cough , I would not consider on going respiratory infections like pneumonia,tuberculosis, etc presently.
The other conditions which could cause the chest pain known as pleurisy are lung tumors, heart failure, lupus,pulmonary embolism,etc, the details for thinking of these possibilities are not noted in the history you have given .
hence I would suggest you not to worry and give it time for spontaneous healing , you could follow these steps for a quicker healing and good recovery
1. Take could rest: rest yourself as much as possible , so that there is no over use of the ribs/the cartilages
2.Make sure your cough is being treated and it is not increasing
3.You could try applying heat packs over the chest wall for some relief, hot water bags can also be placed over the chest
4. NSAID drugs: pain killers like IBUPROFEN/PARACETOMOL will help in allaying pain , they also reduce inflammation
5. Do not exercise/even practice XXXXXXX breathing for some days , eat healthy.
You may expect a good recovery in a couple of weeks time
I hope I answered your query, I shall be available for follow up queries as well.
Thanks for your query.
Since you have had a history of bronchitis which causes a chronic persisting cough, I would relate the chest pain on the right side as the effect of the cough.The condition being called as Costochondritis which is the inflammation of the cartilage and ribs/bones in the chest wall,causing chest pain due to repeated overuse, it is commonly seen around 20 to 40 years of age and cough following a viral fever, respiratory infections,etc being the causes.
Since you also do not have any other significant history like fever, expectoration at present during cough , I would not consider on going respiratory infections like pneumonia,tuberculosis, etc presently.
The other conditions which could cause the chest pain known as pleurisy are lung tumors, heart failure, lupus,pulmonary embolism,etc, the details for thinking of these possibilities are not noted in the history you have given .
hence I would suggest you not to worry and give it time for spontaneous healing , you could follow these steps for a quicker healing and good recovery
1. Take could rest: rest yourself as much as possible , so that there is no over use of the ribs/the cartilages
2.Make sure your cough is being treated and it is not increasing
3.You could try applying heat packs over the chest wall for some relief, hot water bags can also be placed over the chest
4. NSAID drugs: pain killers like IBUPROFEN/PARACETOMOL will help in allaying pain , they also reduce inflammation
5. Do not exercise/even practice XXXXXXX breathing for some days , eat healthy.
You may expect a good recovery in a couple of weeks time
I hope I answered your query, I shall be available for follow up queries as well.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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