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What Is The Cause Of Painful Breath After A Rib Injury?
I fell on the edge of a cardboard box (big, heavy duty) last Friday and hurt my left rib area. no bruising. nothing feels broken but very painful to move or breathe deep. can it be my spleen or maybe just muscle spasm? much worse today. I am 44 female with osteopenia.
Tue, 18 Mar 2014
Hi, thanks for writing to HCM.
Most propably, you might have injured a rib or suffered a contusion of the intercostal muscles due to fall.
Pain during breathing is a very typical symptom of blunt injury to the rib cage. It is due to the expansion of the rib cage during inspiration causing stretching of the injured tissue.
An xray of the injured area is necessary to rule out any rib crack or fracture. Generally, these injuries are benign and will heal spontaneously within 2-3 weeks.
- Avoid lying down on the injured side
- Avoid any movements that trigger severe pain
- Apply ice or a cold pack to the painful area for 15 to 20 minutes, 4 times a day for several days.
- GENTLE massaging of the painful area with a painkiller cream may provide swift relief
- Use moist heat fomentation when you are returning to physical activity. Then use it before stretching. Gentle heating can help loosen the muscle
- Take Analgesic medication as and when necessary
Hope this information is helpful. Good day
Most propably, you might have injured a rib or suffered a contusion of the intercostal muscles due to fall.
Pain during breathing is a very typical symptom of blunt injury to the rib cage. It is due to the expansion of the rib cage during inspiration causing stretching of the injured tissue.
An xray of the injured area is necessary to rule out any rib crack or fracture. Generally, these injuries are benign and will heal spontaneously within 2-3 weeks.
- Avoid lying down on the injured side
- Avoid any movements that trigger severe pain
- Apply ice or a cold pack to the painful area for 15 to 20 minutes, 4 times a day for several days.
- GENTLE massaging of the painful area with a painkiller cream may provide swift relief
- Use moist heat fomentation when you are returning to physical activity. Then use it before stretching. Gentle heating can help loosen the muscle
- Take Analgesic medication as and when necessary
Hope this information is helpful. Good day
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