Hi,I am Dr. Prabhakar Koregol (Cardiologist). I will be looking into your question and guiding you through the process. Please write your question below.
Had viral cardiomyopathy. Severe chest pain. Had viral infection. Why did I have heart attack symptoms?
I went to the er last November thought I was having a heart attack ...no heart attack...scheduled stress test....echo showed heart damage.....had heart cath...no blockages....was determined it was viral cardiomyopathy ...went back to er a couple times with severe chest pain again.....not my heart ....my cardiologist says the pain is not related to heart....have had a cat scan and ultrasound and blood work, nothing ....still chest pains off and on from mild to bad.....since my heart has healed, echo normal but still having the pains that sent me to the hospital....been researching for months and found costochondritis that matches everything that has been going on, I feel the viral infection caused it and the cardiomyopathy...I have been dealing with this for 10 months now ....seems like it will not go away....any thoughts?
Most patients with viral cardiomyopathy recover with time and don't progress to heart failure; costochondritis is a benign condition that can certainly improve with time, but antiinflammatories and physical therapoy can hasten recovery.
Yours truly,
Dr Brenes-Salazar MD Cardiology Mayo Clinic MN
Answered: Wed, 26 Jun 2013
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