“Chest pain on left side: Causes, diagnosis, and treatments - Medical News Today” plus 1 more

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Chest pain on left side: Causes, diagnosis, and treatments - Medical News Today Posted: 20 Dec 2019 12:00 AM PST A person should never ignore chest pain. If a person is experiencing chest pain on the left side of their body, this could indicate a heart attack or other medical conditions, such as a lung problem or inflammation of the lining around a person's heart. This article will cover the potential causes and symptoms of chest pain on the left side. Share on Pinterest A person with chest pain on the left side may be experiencing lung problems. It can be difficult to identify whether chest pain is a sign of a heart attack. However, there are three indications that chest pain may not be a heart attack: Specific location: If pain is coming from one particular place, it is not likely to be a heart attack. Worsening pain: Chest pain associated with a heart attack does not get worse when breathing. Varying locations: Chest pain associated with a heart attack may spread between the shoulder blades, and into the arms and jaw, but it does not move from one side to the other. If a person thinks they may be experiencing a heart attack, they should call 911 and seek immediate medical attention. They should not attempt to drive themselves to the hospital. Signs a person may be having a heart attack include: chest pain or tightness that typically starts in the center of the chest and radiates outward dizziness feeling faint nausea pain that may extend from the chest to the arms, neck, jaw, or shoulders shortness of breath sweating Women are more likely than men to experience symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and pain in the back or jaw. Learn more about chest pain in women here. Acid reflux and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are common causes of left-sided chest pain. These conditions occur when acid comes up from the stomach into the esophagus. The result is a burning sensation across the chest that may occur on one side or the other. Other symptoms may include: a burning feeling in the chest difficulty swallowing a sour taste in the mouth An esophageal tear or rupture is a medical emergency that may cause non-cardiac chest pain. The condition occurs when the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach tears. This enables food or fluids from the mouth to leak into the chest and around the lungs. Symptoms of an esophageal rupture include: faster breathing chest pain fever nausea vomiting, including vomiting blood Sometimes a person may experience this type of injury after extreme vomiting or experiencing physical trauma around the esophagus. There are many types of injury to soft tissue or bones in the chest that can cause left-sided chest pain. An example could be a broken rib or costochondritis, which is inflammation of the cartilage surrounding a rib. If a person has experienced some form of trauma, such as a fall or a car accident, these injuries may lead to chest pain. Some signs that a musculoskeletal injury has occurred include: hearing or feeling a cracking sensation related to the ribs pain that usually worsens when breathing swelling or tenderness at a specific area visible bruising Pericarditis is a medical condition that results from inflammation in the pericardium, which is the tissue that holds the heart. The layers usually glide against each other effortlessly, allowing the heart to beat. However, if the layers become inflamed, a person may experience left-sided chest pain. Additional pericarditis symptoms include: coughing fatigue heart palpitations or occasional rapid heart rate leg swelling low-grade fever sharp chest pain that is usually worse when taking a breath in shortness of breath A person may often experience pericarditis after an illness, such as an upper respiratory infection. Pleurisy is a condition where the tissues around the lungs become inflamed. This can cause pain in the chest, especially when breathing. Other symptoms may include: a dry cough shortness of breath pain in the shoulder A variety of conditions may lead to pleurisy, such as flu or bacterial infections. A pneumothorax is a collapsed lung. This can occur spontaneously, collapsing a small portion of the lung or the lung in almost its entirety. Symptoms of a pneumothorax include: becoming easily fatigued breathing that becomes more painful when taking a deep breath or coughing a rapid heart rate shortness of breath a sudden, sharp chest pain tightness in the chest If the pneumothorax is very large, a person may require the insertion of a chest tube to re-inflate the lung and help keep it open while the lung heals. Left-sided chest pain has many potential causes. A doctor will consider a person's medical history and symptoms when making a diagnosis. A doctor may also perform a physical examination on the chest, heart, lungs, neck, and abdomen. After the physical exam, a doctor may order a variety of tests, including: an ECG an X-ray a complete blood count (CBC) a computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) an ultrasound Treatments for left-sided chest pain depend upon the underlying cause. For gastrointestinal pain such as GERD, the treatment typically includes medications, including proton pump inhibitors, H2 blockers, and promotility agents. Inflammation due to pericarditis or pleurisy may involve administering antibiotics and resting until the tissue lining has had time to heal. A person may require surgery to treat pneumothorax and esophageal ruptures. If a person can pinpoint chest pain on their left side, it is less likely that a heart attack is the underlying cause. However, several conditions may be medical emergencies, such as esophageal rupture and pneumothorax. If a person's symptoms are severe or they are having trouble breathing, they should seek immediate medical attention.

Dozens of Young People Hospitalized for Breathing and Lung Problems After Vaping - The New York Times Posted: 14 Aug 2019 12:00 AM PDT Nearly three dozen young people have been hospitalized around the country in recent weeks for severe respiratory problems after vaping either nicotine or marijuana, stumping doctors treating them. The Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin public health departments are investigating these cases and at least 20 additional emergency admissions that doctors suspect are related to vaping some substance, possibly even illegal street drugs or adulterated liquids laced with T.H.C., the ingredient that produces marijuana's high. There are also cases in California, which appear to be associated with vaping cannabis or cannabidiol oil. Most of the patients were having difficulty breathing when they arrived at the hospital. Some patients also reported chest pain, vomiting and other ailments. The cases have ranged in severity, with some patients suffering severe lung damage that required weeks of treatment in the intensive care units. Each of the patients reported using e-cigarettes or other vaping devices in the weeks leading up to the emergency. But officials are not yet clear whether vaping caused the injuries, and if so, what ingredient in the e-cigarette or vaping systems was responsible. "We know the children have been injured. We don't yet know the causative agent," said Dr. David D. Gummin, medical director of the Wisconsin Poison Center, and professor and chief of medical toxicology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. "We have no leads pointing to a specific substance other than those that are associated with smoking or vaping." Initially, Dr. Gummin said, doctors suspected that the patients were suffering from an infectious disease. But the patients' failure to respond to antibiotics led the doctors to believe they had been harmed by a toxic substance. A common practice among their patients was vaping. "The individuals who have become sick have been very forthcoming about some of their recent history," he said. "Those that have been able to talk have been able to give us some leads, though unfortunately not enough to point us in a specific direction." One hypothesis, said Dr. Gummin, is that the teenagers had purchased a nicotine or cannabis-derived vaping product that had been used once, and then refilled with dangerous substances that would be hard to detect. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported 12 confirmed and 14 suspected cases of vaping-related illnesses, including severe lung damage in people who reported recent vaping or "dabbing," which is vaping marijuana oils, extracts or concentrates. The Wisconsin health officials also said that patients reported using open-tank systems and devices with interchangeable cartridges. Open systems allow users to concoct their own brews of vaping liquids, if they want. Dr. Emily Chapman, chief medical officer for the Children's Minnesota hospital system, said that in the last month or so, it had treated four cases of acute, severe lung damage — including respiratory failure — in teenagers who had been vaping. Although the hospitals' patients have each shown improvement, Dr. Chapman said, it's not clear if they will fully recover. She also noted that investigating a teenager's vaping patterns can be tricky. "The risk here is that if people are presenting to hospital emergency rooms, or urgent cares, they either may not think of vaping as something that is threatening and may not include it in their history," Dr. Chapman said. "Or if asked directly, they may not be comfortable sharing that." Dr. Chapman also said she was concerned about how much of the public believes that vaping is safe. "The truth of the matter is, we have so little experience with vaping, relative to the experience we have with cigarettes and cigars. Recall how long it took us to figure out that cigarettes were linked to lung cancer. There is so much we don't know." One recent study from Yale and Duke identified chemicals called acetals in some Juul e-cigarette liquids. Those chemicals, the researchers said, may be especially irritating to the lungs and can cause damage when inhaled. Juul disagreed with the study's conclusions. "The researchers' hypothetical exposure analysis failed to take into account real world conditions, including realistic human exposure to vapor products like Juul," said Lindsay Andrews, a Juul spokeswoman. Juul pods contain high levels of nicotine, which can cause addiction and health problems. Some experts worry about the effects of nicotine on a developing teenager's brain, and some studies have suggested that nicotine ingestion can also affect the heart and arteries. The F.D.A. is studying whether there is a direct relationship between the use of e-cigarettes and the risk of a seizure or other neurological problems. The agency has received 127 reports of seizures or other neurological symptoms, beginning in 2010. The state public health departments are working with the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to determine what is making the victims sick. "The agency is working with state health officials to gather more information on any products or substances used," said Michael Felberbaum, an F.D.A. spokesman. "We encourage the public to submit detailed reports of any unexpected health or product issues to the F.D.A."

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