If you feel chest pain on the right side, it may mean a heart attack-this is the first thought that comes to mind with this kind of ailment. However, the list of causes causing such a symptom is long, and it does not always mean serious diseases. Here we’ll take a closer look at the chest pain on the right side. It is good to know what the sources of stinging, acute, burning, or excruciating pain are, and what factors aggravate or alleviate it.
The chest is the part of the torso located between the neck and the abdomen. Her skeleton consists of: a centrally located sternum (chest pain is often described as pain in the sternum) and 12 pairs of ribs and thoracic vertebrae each. The most important organs in the chest are the lungs, heart, esophagus, trachea, and large vessels and nerves. Because it is a highly innervated area that houses many vital organs, chest pain can come from many sources.
The causes of chest pain on the right can be divided according to the organ systems in which the ailment is located:
- chest pain on the right side due to diseases of the heart and circulatory system;
- chest pain on the right side due to respiratory diseases;
- chest pain on the right side due to digestive (digestive) diseases;
- chest pain on the right side due to diseases of the nervous and locomotor systems.
In this article, Niketrainers.com.co will tell you:
Causes of pain in the chest on the right side – the circulatory system
Chest pains in the right part or in a more extensive area of it are associated with the symptoms of a heart attack. As you will see, similar symptoms occur in other cardiovascular diseases. Due to the fact that all of them are life-threatening and difficult to diagnose on their own, it is necessary to consult a doctor. First, you should contact your family doctor, but if our problems get worse, we should go to a cardiologist. In the most severe cases, you should call an ambulance. We write about the details below.
Myocardial infarction
It is the result of myocardial ischemia, which in turn is the result of a severe narrowing or closure of the coronary artery that supplies blood to the heart. Due to the lack of blood supply to the heart muscle, its necrosis occurs. Myocardial infarction is manifested by severe pain in the chest – the pain is most often located behind the breastbone and is diffuse, often squeezing, with no specific right or left location. The patient feels a characteristic burning sensation or pain in the sternum (pressure). The chest pain during a heart attack usually lasts more than 20 minutes and may be permanent or recurrent. Pain may also occur in the jaw, neck, back, hand or shoulder. In case of abdominal pain (this may be the only symptom of a heart attack!), There is nausea and vomiting. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, cold sweat, dizziness, loss of consciousness,
Timing is key in the event of a heart attack. If the described pain lasts more than 5 minutes, you should contact the emergency room (even if you are not sure if it is a heart attack). The sooner treatment is started, the less harm to our health will be. Hence the definition of the golden hour to implement the proper treatment procedure.
A heart attack can be prevented. It is worth doing tests that will assess whether we are at risk. For this purpose, contact your doctor, e.g. by teleportation. He will conduct an interview and order any additional tests.
Angina pectoris (angina pectoris)
Like a heart attack, angina is caused by myocardial ischemia due to reduced blood flow to the heart’s cells. It can be manifested by chest pain on the right side, but most often behind the breastbone – less often in the upper abdomen. Pain can radiate to the neck and also to the lower jaw or arms (usually the left arm). It usually takes 1-3 minutes, disappearing after the administration of nitroglycerin under the patient’s tongue. Angina occurs under the influence of exercise (it resolves at rest), under stress or spontaneously. Pain is independent of body position. Pain may be aggravated by a heavy meal or the effects of cold air. Symptoms of angina can be palpitations and feelings of restlessness, a feeling of pressure, crushing or choking. In the event of the above symptoms, it is necessary to immediately contact a doctor, it is best to call an ambulance. This is because similar symptoms may indicate another potentially life-threatening problem.
Aortic dissection
It occurs as a result of damage to the internal parts of the aorta. The blood then tears between the structures of the aortic wall and causes its dissection. The organ receiving blood from the artery in question is gradually ischemic, as well as aortic rupture and life-threatening hemorrhage. Symptoms of aortic dissection are similar to those experienced during an infarction. There is severe pain in the chest behind the breastbone, radiating right or left to the shoulder blades, and as the dissection progresses, to the abdomen and hips, to the shoulders, and then to the neck and jaw. The characteristic symptoms, apart from chest pain, are fainting, feeling anxious and short of breath, the so-called cold sweat, vomiting and nausea, pale skin. Pressing the aorta around the esophagus can make it difficult to swallow. A rupture of the aorta is very life-threatening.
Causes of pain in the chest on the right side – the respiratory system
Chest pain, which results from problems in the respiratory system, requires medical attention. A specialist dealing with this type of disease is a pulmonologist, but pain in the right side of the chest or located in another part of it may indicate an advanced stage of the disease and require urgent medical intervention, including calling an ambulance.
Pneumothorax
It occurs as a consequence of air entering the pleural cavity, which makes it impossible to properly fill the lung with air. Over time, the lung may stop working altogether. A symptom of pneumothorax is pleural pain (it also occurs with pleural infiltration, pleural irritation during pulmonary infarction). Chest pain appears on the right or on the left – depending on the pleura involved, most often unilaterally. Pain may radiate to the shoulder blades. It has a sharp and prickly nature. It may worsen with coughing when breathing heavily. He recedes in the supine position in which the pain appeared. Dyspnoea may be an accompanying symptom of chest pain.
Pulmonary embolism
It is the result of loss of capacity in the pulmonary artery and its branches through thrombuses usually originating in the veins in the legs, less often in the upper parts of the body. In addition to clots, blockages can be caused by an excess of air bubbles in the blood, fat (such as liposuction), or amniotic fluid. Pulmonary embolism is manifested by shortness of breath and chest pain (not only on the right side). Less common is a dry cough, fainting, and bloody sputum. As the symptoms are similar to those of a heart attack (shortness of breath and chest pain), if they occur, contact your doctor immediately.
Bronchitis and tracheitis
It is the result of a viral infection, much less often a bacterial one – chest pain is sporadic, it may possibly accompany a cough, muscle pain and general malaise.
Causes of chest pain on the right side – digestive (digestive) system
Chest pain on the right side can accompany diseases of the digestive system. A specialist doctor who can help us then is a gastroenterologist. His intervention will not always be necessary, although there are some complaints that require immediate medical intervention.
Heartburn
Chest pain with heartburn may appear on the right side, but is most common behind the breastbone. The pain is burning, causes a burning sensation and may be mistaken for symptoms of myocardial ischemia. Heartburn is caused by regurgitation of food and digestive acids into the esophagus. Hydrochloric acid irritates the walls of the esophagus, causing pain. Heartburn can be a symptom of acid reflux disease (see below).
Gastroesophageal reflux disease
The esophagus caused by hydrochloric acid irritates it and causes inflammation of the esophageal mucosa. There is pain in the chest on the right side, but more often behind the breastbone, it can radiate to the back. It is stinging, sometimes crushing. If these symptoms recur more often, contact your doctor.
Rupture of the esophagus
Can be due to an injury or it can occur on its own (Boerhaave syndrome). In the second case, it is the result of damage to the esophagus, e.g. during strong, violent vomiting. The chest pain is located behind the breastbone, it is rarely felt on the right side. He is very strong and burning and is accompanied by vomiting. Surgical intervention is usually required when the esophagus is ruptured.
Causes of pain in the chest on the right side – the locomotor system and nervous system
The causes of chest pain on the right side due to diseases of the locomotor system and the nervous system are
described collectively due to their specificity, i.e. the strictly occurring interrelationships between the locomotor system and nerves. Orthopedists are specialists in the field of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, and neurologists are specialists of the nervous system.
- Chest pain on the right side may appear as a result of overstrain after exercise.
- Chest pain on the right side in inflammation of the sternocostal and sternoclavicular joints (sharp or crushing pain that increases with the movement of the chest, e.g. when coughing or breathing), as well as with degenerative changes in the spine.
- Psychogenic chest pain; hypochondria, anxiety syndromes, neuroses (local pain in the anterior wall of the chest with variable characteristics, increases during stress – accompanying symptoms: shortness of breath, palpitations and a feeling of anxiety).
- Chest pains of nervous origin, neuralgia (neuralgia) – appear in diseases of the spine (back pain, pain in the spine), ribs, as a result of irritation and damage to the nerves or rheumatoid arthritis, nodular arteritis. Chest pain on the right side and / or on the left side, radiating from the ribs to the center of the chest.
It is worth noting that the pain on the right side of the chest can also be a symptom of herpes zoster, an infectious disease that reactivates the infection by the herpes zoster virus (VZV). Initially, there is pain on one side, and in the following days, a characteristic rash appears at the site of the pain. Symptoms require medical consultation and implementation of treatment in order to relieve symptoms faster.
