Many people have chest pain. In our chest, the main organs and tissues include lung, heart, great blood vessels, ribs and thoracic vertebrae. The cause of chest pain is often something wrong with some organs. Today we will talk about the common causes of chest pain.
First, lung diseases. Many lung diseases may cause chest pain in patients with different degrees.
1, lung cancer. I believe everyone is very familiar with lung cancer. It is the tumor with the highest morbidity and mortality in China. Many people think of lung cancer first for chest pain. Although I said at the beginning of the article, most of chest pain is not lung cancer, and lung cancer can cause chest pain. Early lung cancer generally has no symptoms, but in the middle and late stage of lung cancer, there will be various symptoms, including chest pain, which is often dull or dull, and often has no obvious position, which is aggravated when taking a deep breath, coughing or laughing. At the same time, other symptoms besides chest pain often appear in advanced lung cancer, such as hemoptysis, cough and shortness of breath. Generally, it is not just a single chest pain.
If the above symptoms appear, it is suspected that it may be lung cancer. It is suggested to go to the hospital to screen the possibility of lung cancer in time, and the best way to screen lung cancer is chest CT examination. Chest CT examination can find early tiny lung cancer as small as 5mm, which is the best method to diagnose and screen lung cancer. For the lesions suspected by CT as lung cancer, but uncertain, fiberoptic bronchoscopy and CT-guided puncture can also be done to make a definite diagnosis.
Once lung cancer is diagnosed, those who can be treated surgically must be treated surgically in time, and those who cannot be treated surgically can choose other treatment methods such as chemotherapy and targeted therapy.
2. Pulmonary infectious diseases. In addition to lung cancer, some pulmonary infectious diseases may also cause chest pain, such as lung abscess; When the inflammation of abscess accumulates parietal pleura, it can cause chest pain; Its pain is often manifested as persistent pain. In addition to pain, lung abscess also has symptoms such as chills, high fever, cough and expectoration.
For pulmonary infectious diseases such as pulmonary abscess, the best examination method is still lung CT examination. At the same time, combined with laboratory blood tests, the diagnosis can often be made.
After a definite diagnosis, the treatment of pulmonary infectious diseases is mainly drug therapy, such as anti-infection, anti-fungus, anti-tuberculosis, etc., and surgery is generally not needed.
Second, heart disease. Many heart diseases can also cause chest pain.
1, coronary heart disease. I believe everyone is familiar with coronary heart disease. The most common symptom of coronary heart disease is chest pain or chest tightness. It often appears after strenuous activity, emotional excitement and full meal, and is often located behind the left chest or sternum, with a feeling of squeezing, squeezing, burning or dull pain. Usually it will get better after rest, and the attack time is generally within 5 minutes. If it cannot be relieved continuously, more serious myocardial infarction may occur.
If the above similar symptoms appear, it is suggested to screen the possibility of coronary heart disease in time. The main methods for screening coronary heart disease are blood test (CRP), coronary angiography, echocardiography and coronary angiography. Coronary angiography is the gold standard for the diagnosis of coronary heart disease.
Once coronary heart disease is diagnosed, the main treatment methods are drug therapy, interventional therapy and bypass therapy, and the specific treatment methods need to be formulated by specialists according to the specific condition.
2. Myocardial infarction. Acute myocardial infarction is generally characterized by severe angina pectoris, mainly including chest compression, and often accompanied by pain in the arm, neck or shoulder and back. Pain can be diffuse, and it is difficult to point out the specific location of pain. Another feature of myocardial infarction is that rest can't relieve symptoms, and nitroglycerin treatment is ineffective.
The combination of symptoms and electrocardiogram can diagnose acute myocardial infarction.
Once diagnosed as acute myocardial infarction, emergency interventional therapy is generally needed, otherwise it is likely to endanger the patient's life.
3. Other heart diseases. Other heart diseases, such as heart failure, congenital heart disease, acquired valve disease, etc., may also have chest pain symptoms in different degrees, but the probability of chest pain caused by these diseases is generally low, and the pain characteristics are not specific; Therefore, chest pain occurs, and such diseases are generally not considered. At the same time, these diseases can be screened by echocardiography and other inspection methods; Once diagnosed, it also needs timely treatment.
Third, macrovascular diseases. 1, thoracic aortic aneurysm. Clinical symptoms often appear when thoracic aortic aneurysm compresses or invades adjacent organs, and the main symptom is chest pain. Chest pain often manifests as oppressive persistent dull pain. Such as trachea, bronchus, etc. If you are oppressed, you may have an irritating cough, may oppress the recurrent laryngeal nerve, and may also cause hoarseness.
If you suspect thoracic aortic aneurysm, it is suggested that you can choose thoracic ct angiography, which can effectively judge the condition of aorta and other large vessels and make an accurate diagnosis.
For the treatment of thoracic aortic aneurysm, it is generally recommended to operate as soon as possible to avoid possible complications in the future.
2. Aortic dissection. Aortic dissection is a serious and critical disease, and its main symptom is persistent and unbearable tearing of chest, back or abdomen or knife-like pain. Pain may also lead to collapse, coma, blindness, dyspnea, numbness of both lower limbs, etc.
Aortic dissection is critical, with sudden onset and severe symptoms. Need to be sent to the hospital in time. The main diagnostic methods include blood examination and CT angiography. CT angiography can evaluate the spread and severity of dissection and understand the specific situation of true and false cavities, which is an essential auxiliary examination.
The condition of aortic dissection is generally not very dangerous. Once it is diagnosed, it must be monitored and treated immediately, and then a specialist needs to evaluate whether to perform surgery.
Four, rib or thoracic spine lesions. 1, rib or chest trauma. If there is a rib or thoracic vertebra fracture after trauma, chest pain often occurs. This kind of chest pain generally persists, and it will get worse when taking a deep breath, coughing or transposition. Of course, this kind of chest pain often has a history of trauma, which can generally be combined with the medical history for preliminary screening.
For the diagnosis of fracture, X-ray or CT examination can generally be done. Generally, CT can find subtle rib fractures, but for some hidden spinal fractures, MRI is needed.
After the fracture is diagnosed, it is generally necessary to choose conservative treatment or surgical treatment according to the specific condition.
2. Metastatic bone tumors in ribs or thoracic vertebrae. Metastatic bone tumors can also cause chest pain, and its pain characteristics often gradually change from paroxysmal pain to persistent long-term pain. At the same time, it is often accompanied by signs of cancer patients such as emaciation and fatigue.
Metastatic bone tumors can be confirmed by CT, MRI or bone scanning.
Summary: There are many diseases that cause chest pain. The above is the introduction of common diseases that cause chest pain. Here, Dr. Liu would like to remind everyone that for chest pain, never take painkillers at will to relieve the pain. If the pain lasts for a long time, it is recommended to go to the hospital in time to improve the relevant examination, discharge related diseases and carry out targeted treatment.