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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Pain In The Rib Cage?

I have been having pain at the upper right rib cage area, I am not terribly over weight, I am 57 year old female the pain comes and goes and sometimes when I push in at that area it is more painful. I had a pheochromocytoma at age 28, is it possible the pain is from adhesions? or is it more likely to be from gallbladder??
Wed, 30 Aug 2017
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  User's Response
Hi there,

Pain at the rib cage when you push sounds like costochondritis, which is inflammation of the rib joint. A pheochromocytoma is usually located in the retroperitoneum, near the kidney (flank/back region), and the symptoms of adhesions are usually pain with eating, bloating, and obstructive type symptoms. Gallbladder pain is usually 30 minutes after eating a fatty meal.

The first thing I'd try is ibuprofen for a few days. I'd try taking 400mg every 8 hours (as long as you don't have any stomach or kidney problems) for about 5 days and see if that helps. If it takes care of it, then it was inflammation and your diagnosis was costochondritis, which is not a serious condition.

If the pain continues, then you can consider getting a right upper quadrant ultrasound to evaluate your gallbladder.

I hope I have answered your question. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions or if you feel I haven't adequately answered your question.
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What Causes Pain In The Rib Cage?

Hi there, Pain at the rib cage when you push sounds like costochondritis, which is inflammation of the rib joint. A pheochromocytoma is usually located in the retroperitoneum, near the kidney (flank/back region), and the symptoms of adhesions are usually pain with eating, bloating, and obstructive type symptoms. Gallbladder pain is usually 30 minutes after eating a fatty meal. The first thing I d try is ibuprofen for a few days. I d try taking 400mg every 8 hours (as long as you don t have any stomach or kidney problems) for about 5 days and see if that helps. If it takes care of it, then it was inflammation and your diagnosis was costochondritis, which is not a serious condition. If the pain continues, then you can consider getting a right upper quadrant ultrasound to evaluate your gallbladder. I hope I have answered your question. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions or if you feel I haven t adequately answered your question.