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Dr. Andrew Rynne
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Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Rapid Heart Beats, Continuous Chest Pain Since Popping The Sternum, Bigger Meals Caused Rapid Beats. Cause?

About a 6 weeks ago, I noticed my heart began beating fast after almost every meal. I decided to change my diet , and since then I ve been eating completely different. I also started to exercise, daily, jogging one day, and walking the other day, gradually adding distance. About 2 weeks in to this change, I started doing some other exercises, and right after I was finished, I popped my sternum by stretching . I suddenly felt a strong pain on my chest on the right side of the sternum (thought my heart was beating fast). I looked up what my symptoms were pointing at, fearing a heart attack , but none of the symptoms pointed to a heart attack other than the pain on the chest, so with further online research, I found that I may have caused Tietze syndrome . Now, the pain has lingered ever since. Some days it hurts more than others, but since the day it happened, my chest rarely hurts, and now only hurts when I feel cold air on my chest, or when I wake up, with pain lasting about 2 hours after I wake up. I ve been taking it easy, and even started walking only instead of jogging. It seems to have helped tone the pain down a lot. Other symptoms I ve felt since then include weird changes in my heart beat. Before I started exercising, my heart s resting rate was about 95bpm, so it was pretty high to me. I have high blood pressure . I am 25 years old, 6 tall, and used to weigh 278 lbs. I am currently at 252lbs, and my resting heart rate has dropped to about 70bpm. Heart rate after eating meals has seemed to have gotten better, but sometimes, a bigger meal will cause my heart to beat faster. AND, the other thing is, ever since the pain on my chest, when going from sitting, to standing, my hear beat goes up about 30 bpm faster for a bit. I was looking at POTS information, but I think it may be related to something else. I do not have health insurance, so I am afraid to visit the doctor. I can barely afford my cost of living, so I really hope someone can shed some light into what may be wrong with me.
Tue, 11 Jun 2013
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Cardiologist 's  Response
Dear patient,

thanks for your health concerns. You are probably right, the chest discomfort might have been result of inflammation of the cartilage and sternal junction. I congratulate you on losing weight and becoming more fit, that is why your resting heart rate has decreased; now, the increase in heart rate from sitting to standing is usually a normal, compensatory response to maintain perfusion to the brain and not faint, so I do not think it is something to be alarmed.

Yours truly,

Dr Brenes-Salazar MD
Cardiology
Mayo Clinic MN
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Rapid Heart Beats, Continuous Chest Pain Since Popping The Sternum, Bigger Meals Caused Rapid Beats. Cause?

Dear patient, thanks for your health concerns. You are probably right, the chest discomfort might have been result of inflammation of the cartilage and sternal junction. I congratulate you on losing weight and becoming more fit, that is why your resting heart rate has decreased; now, the increase in heart rate from sitting to standing is usually a normal, compensatory response to maintain perfusion to the brain and not faint, so I do not think it is something to be alarmed. Yours truly, Dr Brenes-Salazar MD Cardiology Mayo Clinic MN