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What Causes Intense Pain And Crack In Left Rib Cage Below The Breast?

Posted on Mon, 22 Aug 2016

Question: I am 49 year old female...lying prone on pool chair yesterday...attempted to lift upper body first...felt intense pain and crack left rib cage below breast...able to move around later but had pain with movement...area involved looks slightly larger/ different than other side. Is this just a minor injury that will go away on its own without treatment?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Naveen Kumar Sharma (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
You may have hair line fracture in ribs

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
I have studied your case and I think you may have hairline fracture.Or there can be possibility of muscular injury in rib. I have following suggestions for you.
1.get a chest x ray to see if their is any fracture in rib.
2.in case of fracture there will be pain on coughing ,sneezing and lying on that side. It takes at least 35 days in complete healing.
3.you need to take Brufen 400 mg twice daily and hot water fomentation.
4.you need to apply volini gel locally.
5.you need to take 1000 mg calcium daily for three months and 60000 unit vitamin D per week for six weeks.
I hope these steps will be helpful for you.Let me know if their is any other followup questions.
Thanks

Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Nagamani Ng