Musculoskeletal chest pain or non-emergency chest pain

In everyday clinical practice I see a lot of patients who are suffering from chest pain. These chest pain are not life threatening but definitely cause discomfort to the patient. The major challenge for a doctor is to confirm that the pain is not life threatening and to convince the patient as well. Usually every patient suffering from any kind of chest pain thinks that they may have a heart attack or cardiac chest pain. But there are some non-emergency chest pain. Musculoskeletal pains are among them.

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Those who are heavy workers and engaged in lifting heavy objects, their chest pain is due to muscle or joints related to the work.

There are some inflammatory conditions where the chest joints or carriages are involved. Tietze syndrome, relapsing polychondritis etc are examples of inflammatory conditions.

Someone can simply get chest pain due to muscle cramp around chest.

A person may have a history of injury to his/her chest before starting the chest pain

These are usually the reason of musculoskeletal chest pain. Pain killers and reassurance are enough as the treatment options.

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In this regards, we should know about the pattern of serious cardiac chest pain

• It is mid chest pain( retrosternal), not left sided
• Severe compressing or crushing or tightening chest pain
• The pain is associated with nausea (vomiting tendency), vomiting and sweating
• The pain typically radiate to the throat, neck, left shoulder and left upper limb
• A heart attack patient may show characteristic hand gestures
• Usually start following exertion
  
  Taken from Davidson's principles and practice of medicine 23rd Edition
  
  
  
  

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