Suggest treatment for chest pain while breathing
Patient: Today in work I lifted a tote box full of shoes it slipped on the tote under it and hit me in the chest,it really hurt and as soon as I done it i felt sick.it still hurts now,it doesn't hurt to breath but its a constant pain that almost feels like heart burn.should I go to the hospital or should I just rest? Doctor: Hello!Thank you for asking on HCM!I understand your concern, and would like to explain that your pain is originated from traumatic injury of chest wall structures.First of all, it is necessary to exclude important damages of thoracic cage (ribs, sternal fracture, etc as well as soft tissue contusion, like intercostal muscles and more profound structures: lungs, heart, aorta, esophagus, etc).I recommend to seek medical help to your local ER service: a careful physical examination, chest X ray study, pulmonary and cardiac ultrasound, coupled with some lab tests (like AST, ALT, CK-MB, troponin, etc), would be necessary to rule in/out the above mentioned potential injuries ( depending on severity of shock).Meanwhile, a painkiller medication would be helpful.Hope to have been helpful! Greetings! Dr. Iliri