What causes breast pain in women?

Bones are a very important part of the body structure for everyone, and they mainly play a supporting role in people's lives. Many people know that bones are very hard compared to other parts of the body, but this hard part is prone to problems. Sometimes some women feel severe pain in their breasts. When this happens, many people will worry that there is something wrong with their breasts. So what causes sternum pain in women?

1 Physiological factors

Physiological factors such as tension and cold may cause pain in the center of the chest. It is usually caused by excessive weight bearing or overloaded heavy objects. The pain worsens when stretching the arms or performing other activities. This type of chest pain is usually not serious and can be relieved by applying some medicated oil. If the test results are normal, there is generally no major problem. To reduce the occurrence of pain in the middle of the chest, you can start by improving your lifestyle habits. Adhere to a low-salt, low-fat, low-cholesterol diet and quit smoking and drinking. Make sure to get enough rest and avoid overwork. You can improve your physical fitness through gentle aerobic activities such as walking, jogging, and Tai Chi. If you feel uncomfortable during exercise, stop and rest in time. Add or remove clothes according to weather changes, avoid crowded places, and prevent upper respiratory tract infections. Keep your mood happy and avoid extreme joy or sorrow.

2 Cardiopulmonary disease

If the chest pain is caused by organic heart disease, the symptoms may have certain characteristics. Angina pectoris is a relatively common heart disease and a type of coronary heart disease. The patient's pain is typically located behind the sternum and in front of the heart, and may also radiate to surrounding areas. The pain lasts for several minutes and is often relieved by rest or sublingual nitroglycerin. If the pain is severe and lasts for a long time, there is a possibility of myocardial infarction and you must seek medical attention immediately without delay.

3 Intercostal neuritis

The so-called intercostal nerves are nerves that run along the ribs of the chest, from the back through the flanks to the front of the chest. Intercostal neuralgia is an intense pain that occurs in a semicircular shape along this nerve through the chest and abdomen. If severe pain occurs from the chest to the side abdomen or from the back to the side abdomen, you will feel unbearable pain when turning around, laughing, taking a deep breath, or yawning. This is intercostal neuralgia.

4 Costochondritis

Costochondritis is a common disease, which is divided into nonspecific costochondritis and infectious costochondritis. The cause of the disease is still unclear, but it may be caused by infection with pathogenic bacteria, and may be related to tuberculosis, general malnutrition, acute bacterial upper respiratory tract infection, rheumatoid arthritis, subluxation of the sternocostal joints, chest impact injuries, severe coughing and other injuries.

In the early stage of the disease, patients feel chest pain. After a few days, swelling, bulge, dull pain or sharp pain appear in the affected costal cartilage. The site of occurrence is mostly the 2nd to 4th costal cartilage beside the sternum, with the 2nd costal cartilage being the most common, and occasionally it can also occur in the costal arch. This disease often affects a single rib, but occasionally multiple ribs or both sides of the ribs are affected at the same time. There is obvious local tenderness, and the pain radiates severely to the scapula or side shoulder, upper arm, and armpit of the back, and is aggravated by deep breathing, coughing, and activity. Because the lesion is located in the upper part of the breast, there is also referred pain in the breast on the same side, and female patients mistakenly think they have breast pain and seek medical treatment. The course of the disease may last for several hours or days, but it may relapse and usually heal itself within a few months, but in some cases it may last for several years.

5 Pleurisy

The main clinical manifestations of pleurisy are chest pain, cough, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and even difficulty breathing. When infectious pleurisy or pleural effusion is secondary to infection, there may be chills and fever. Mild cases may be asymptomatic. Pleurisy caused by different etiologies may be accompanied by clinical manifestations of the corresponding diseases. Chest pain is the most common symptom of pleurisy. It often occurs suddenly and varies greatly in severity, ranging from vague discomfort to severe tingling, or it may only occur when the patient takes a deep breath or coughs, or it may persist and be aggravated by deep breathing or coughing.

Chest pain is caused by inflammation of the parietal pleura and occurs in the chest wall opposite the site of inflammation. It may also present as referred pain in the abdomen, neck, or shoulders. Deep breathing can be painful and cause rapid and shallow breathing, and muscle movement on the affected side is weaker than on the other side. If a large amount of accumulation occurs, the two layers of pleura may separate from each other, and the chest pain may disappear. A large amount of pleural effusion can cause unilateral or bilateral lung movement limitation during breathing, resulting in dyspnea. Physical examination may reveal a pleural friction sound.

6 Digestive tract diseases

The digestive tract is a long muscular tube that starts from the mouth and continues to the pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and ends at the anus. It includes the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, ileum) and large intestine (cecum, colon, rectum). Digestive tract diseases, especially those of the throat, esophagus, and stomach, may cause chest infections.

7 Neurosis

Neurosis is also called neurosis or psychoneurosis. It is a general term for a group of mental disorders, including neurasthenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorder, phobia, somatoform disorder, etc. Neurosis can cause dysfunction of the human body's internal organs, such as bloating, intestinal rumbling, constipation or diarrhea; palpitations, chest tightness, shortness of breath, limb weakness, fatigue, and a sense of impending death. The specific manifestation is anxiety disorder, which mostly occurs in middle-aged and young people. The inducing factors are mainly related to people's personality and environment. Although there are also symptoms such as palpitations, shortness of breath, indigestion, nausea and vomiting, abdominal distension and constipation, sweating, limb tremors, spermatorrhea, impotence, and irregular menstruation, unlike neurosis, the medical history is relatively short, and the cause of the anxiety can be found out.