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Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,793
Registered: ‎11-16-2014

Re: Chest pressure and back pain


@cherry wrote:

 @isten to @Trinity11  she knows what she is talking about


@cherry, thank you. I can thank John/Hckynut for a post he had regarding back pain and heart attacks in women. If I hadn't read it, I never would have gone to the ER that day. Even when I got there, the staff told me I was too thin and young to be having a heart attack. Only when the cardiac enzymes came back from the lab, did they realize I was having a heart attack.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,721
Registered: ‎10-01-2013

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

It sounds to me like she is being treated by her physician and tests are being done. She has had an EKG and blood tests and will be having a stress test. It will be good for her to get some answers and a treatment plan if necessary. 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,739
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

Thanks to @hckynut, @Trinity11  is still here. If it weren't for him, she might not be

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,793
Registered: ‎11-16-2014

Re: Chest pressure and back pain


@cherry wrote:

Thanks to @hckynut, @Trinity11  is still here. If it weren't for him, she might not be


@cherry....that is why I never immediately discount some of the anecdotal information from this forum. John often posts a lot of "facts" about heart disease and he is well versed. Your posts about diabetes are always helpful.

 

I have been dealing with sciatica the past few weeks and I did a search here and there were many threads about it. I was better able to understand how to deal with it.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,739
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

Also if you are diabetic, no matter what type, you carry a higher risk for heart problems

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Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,793
Registered: ‎11-16-2014

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

Just a word of warning... I had a nuclear scan and stress test just weeks before I had a heart attack. I passed with flying colors. My doctor claims that they only real way to tell what is going on in the coronary arteries (if you have risk factors) is to do an angiogram.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 13,510
Registered: ‎05-23-2010

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

[ Edited ]

From Healthline Medically reviewed by J. Keith Fisher, MD

May 23, 2019Written by Jill Seladi-Schulman, PhD

Please search using the google search bar for the article entitled “14 Causes of Back and Chest Pain” It is one page and very informative. The articles gives causes and explanations as to why you might experience both back and chest pain at the same time. It also asks you to seek medical help including emergency care if you think you are having a heart attack. A concise but excellent explanation of each associated disorder is also included in the article.

 

 

I’m summarizing from the article:

These causes include heart attack, angina (which you might see upon exertion), pericarditis( which can come from infections or autoimmune disease), aortic aneurysms, pulmonary embolism, pleurisy, heartburn and reflux, gallstones, pancreatitis, muscle injury or overuse that could come from something like rowing or coughing, peptic ulcer, herniated disc including a pinched nerve in the neck, shingles, and cancer.

 

Pain on the left side could mean heart attack, angina, pericarditis or aortic aneurism. Pains on the right side could stem from gallbladder.Pain after eating could come from pancreatitis of reflux or heartburn. Peptic ulcer pain can come with an empty stomach. Some pain gets worse when coughing. Some conditions that could be associated with pain from coughing include angina, heart attack, pericarditis, pulmonary embolism, pleurisy. (Not from the article, but chest infections have been known to cause pain when coughing.) Pain upon inhalation can be associated with pericarditis, pulmonary embolism, pleurisy, and lung cancer.

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,580
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

It could be a myriad of things from heart issues to anxiety to acid reflux to gall bladder.  Don't assume because you haven't died yet that it's not heart related.

 

I will tell you this story.  My DH had no history of heart issues.  Then all of a sudden he started to have what he described as a weird feeling.  He went to the doctor who said he would put an order in for a stress test after examining him.  A couple days later at work, he had this feeling and his boss insisted on taking him straight to the ER.  I was called and met him there.

 

Long story short, he ended up having 99% blockage in what is called the widow maker and had to have a stent put in.  The cardiologist said that he is quite certain DH would have coded while having a stress test done and there is a high probability he wouldn't have made it.  

 

I personally wouldn't mess around and I wouldn't be going to a gynecologist over this.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 13,510
Registered: ‎05-23-2010

Re: Chest pressure and back pain


@Trinity11 wrote:

Just a word of warning... I had a nuclear scan and stress test just weeks before I had a heart attack. I passed with flying colors. My doctor claims that they only real way to tell what is going on in the coronary arteries (if you have risk factors) is to do an angiogram.


How about this. My mom had a heart attack at home. When the paramedics showed up they didn’t think she had a heart attack so they left her home while we waited for an ambulance. 

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,170
Registered: ‎05-30-2012

Re: Chest pressure and back pain

EKG and blood tests are not enough don't stop until you get to the bottom of this. Be your own best advocate. I had blood tests and EKG which told me nothing until the Cardiologist did a Heart Cath with camera and that is when he could see the blockage. Until then the tests were not definitive.