Broken/cracked ribs?

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 3:23 pm

Hey, so I have not been able to get a job over the Summer after I finished my second-to-final semester in college. I've been trying to get a new job in IT but I haven't had much luck. I had a couple of nibbles but they always chose someone who already either had their degree or they had their certification. I need the job so that I can get my CCNA certification. Unfortunately, being married has taken its toll and I do not have the money to take the test (it is $300 a pop). Recently our car just died and we do not know if it is fixable at this point (we have reason to believe that the engine is shot and my Dad is in the process of towing it today). On the 4th, I was coughing a lot due to a cold and after the firework show was over, I started to notice that I felt some kind-of pressure in the upper-right side of my chest. Felt like either really strong heart-burn or gas trapped below my lung. It was too high to be my heart but felt more like my lung region. I was a bit concerned so we waited for a day or so and the pain went down over time. However, after about 2-3 days, it no longer feels like gas or a heart problem. It feels more like a problem with my bones. Every time I breath or move, I feel pain in my back just around my shoulder blade. It feels more like something is cracked to me at this point, probably from my recent coughing fits. I have heard of people cracking/breaking ribs through coughing too hard before but I guess I never really believed it could happen to me.

Anyway, the wife wants to take me to the hospital when she gets home but I don't really think we should because I don't feel that we can afford it between school and the car. I mean, to my knowledge, you can't really do anything other than take some pain killers, take it easy, avoid lifting, and let the rib heal itself anyway. I would rather spend that time and money looking for a job and trying to get the car fixed.

I don't see any discoloration or anything that screams doctor to me. Give me a little asprin and I can take it.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 3:38 pm

I hope it's not cancer. There's a type of cancer that starts hurting in the bone and spreads. Normally you'd want to get it checked early, because with that kind they have to remove the bone. I have no idea what happens if they have to remove parts of the spine.

Can someone else review the original post and tell whether or not it sounds like a cancer?

fliptw · Post by **fliptw** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 3:44 pm

if you did crack a rib, there would be a some swelling in the area.

you probably strained a muscle with your coughing.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 3:54 pm

Just pay to get an x-ray done. Then you might be able to mail them off to someone that can look at them. You might be able to scan them and post them on reddit just to get a few hundred free unofficial answers from med students and maybe a few doctors.

edit:
Ok. Just found someone with coughing symptoms and some broken ribs. So far cancer results, from a biopsy, are negative. Doctors say he has a vitamin D deficiency, but he still has no idea what's wrong. Some people on the forum are saying he could have cancer and that a biopsy yielding negative results doesn't mean a later biopsy won't be positive later.

http://forums.bettermedicine.com/showth ... -no-tramua

Again. This should get x-rayed. You don't mess with cancer.

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 4:58 pm

I really doubt it's cancer. I'm 29 and I don't know of anyone in my family who has died if cancer. Not saying that it can't happen, I'm not an expert on cancer but I don't really think that, that is it and I certainly don't think it is. I'll get it checked out I guess. It's just hard when you don't have much money and the ★■◆● hits the fan. This week has been weird for me though. Poked myself in the head with a nail on accident (literally slammed my head into it on accident), then this started happening on the 4th, and almost got in a car accident yesterday when the engine in my wife's car gave out during a pass.

It could be just a strained muscle but it has been a few days since the 4th now. Like I said, there isn't any visible injury. However, I did crack my arm when I was little and I don't recall having very much swelling.

The pain isn't extreme and I'm not coughing up blood or anything. It's mostly just a nuisance and hurts when I shift around. Only thing that really is alarming about it at all is that I had a hard time breathing on the night of the 4th because of the pain.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 7:52 pm

Ok, I think the ribs and the coughing are related. This is very common. It's still worth going to a doctor to rule out cancer. But coughing can cause really really bad pain in the ribs.

edit: someone I know had a bad cough and really painful ribs. Doctor told her the rib pain was directly caused by the coughing. Still, ignore me; go to a doctor.

edit edit

TechPro · Post by **TechPro** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 9:36 pm

All you've got is a "chest inflammation". Tell the doc that, he/she will check you and give you a prescription of anti-biotics and send you home. In a couple days you'll be right as rain (or nearly).

Happens to me from time to time.

Jeff250 · Post by **Jeff250** » Sat Jul 07, 2012 10:44 pm

Does your college have a student clinic? If so, you can usually see a doctor for ~$20.

Sirius · Post by **Sirius** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 12:51 am

Sometimes I forget how ridiculous this place is... the concept of having to "do I/don't I" over going to the doctor because of not being able to afford it is rather alien to me... and New Zealand wasn't comparatively rich, either.

Top Gun · Post by **Top Gun** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 1:35 am

Welcome to 'murkia. We don't want dat big ebil gub'mint helping us when we're sick, no sir!

Canuck · Post by **Canuck** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 1:44 am

Could have tweaked the sciatic nerve in an inane spot... did you take a huge impact to the ribs? I have cracked ribs... feels like someone is jabbing you with a knife of fire sometimes... years later too.

Ferno · Post by **Ferno** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 11:18 am

all you have is bruising. take some asprin.

Tunnelcat · Post by **Tunnelcat** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 1:56 pm

I've got a friend that works at a hardware store that recently broke a rib. He KNOWS when he cracked it because it HURT LIKE HELL when it happened! He jammed a pipe into it when it broke during a cutting operation. That baby hurts him just to breathe in and it hurts to press on the broken rib. Doesn't like to bend his back now either. Can't put a cast on it or anything either. It has to heal on it's own, very carefully.

Ever think you might have some form of pleurisy?

Ferno · Post by **Ferno** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 11:11 pm

ok just stop stop. stop. stop. STOP. the guy doesn't have pleurisy. don't tell him anything like that TC. not ever. you'll send him into a panic. you just don't have the credentials to make any kind of diagnosis. no one here does.

Like I said before. don't EVER diagnose yourself via internet. you'll almost always end up being wrong. Just have a talk with your GP. and listen to what he says. and to hell what people say on the forums.

flip · Post by **flip** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 4:23 am

Pulled muscle. It would take some kind of trauma or impact to break a rib. I've done the same thing several times. Usually from pushing up a wall and not using both arms and staying square. It will probably keep recurring unless you develop good form.

Pandora · Post by **Pandora** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 5:18 am

Ferno wrote:ok just stop stop. stop. stop. STOP. the guy doesn't have pleurisy. don't tell him anything like that TC. not ever. you'll send him into a panic. you just don't have the credentials to make any kind of diagnosis. no one here does.

Like I said before. don't EVER diagnose yourself via internet. you'll almost always end up being wrong. Just have a talk with your GP. and listen to what he says. and to hell what people say on the forums.

Listen to what Ferno said. Ask your GP.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 6:08 am

tunnelcat wrote:I've got a friend that works at a hardware store that recently broke a rib. He KNOWS when he cracked it because it HURT LIKE HELL when it happened! He jammed a pipe into it when it broke during a cutting operation. That baby hurts him just to breathe in and it hurts to press on the broken rib. Doesn't like to bend his back now either. Can't put a cast on it or anything either. It has to heal on it's own, very carefully.

Ever think you might have some form of pleurisy?

pleurisy is very uncommon. Rib pain caused by coughing, however, is very common.
This has the same symptoms as hurt ribs caused by coughing.

flip · Post by **flip** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 7:00 am

Don't put a great deal of confidence in doctors. Stuff that cannot be conclusively tested is mainly guesswork. For instance, I had over 7 doctors diagnose my groin pain as a hernia. They were taking into account my age and other factors to make this "guess". After going to an orthopedic doctor some 10 years later, it was successfully diagnosed as degeneration in my hip joint. If you are going to go to a doctor, make sure it is a specialist. In fact, the last time I went to the emergency room for groin pain, the emergency room doctor told me I had a hernia, again. I asked him if he was sure because I had already had several doctors tell me the same thing, but then I go to the surgeon and he tells me,again, I do not have a hernia. This was before I 'finally' picked the right doctor. That degree is only as good as the mind it "certifies"

Foil · Post by **Foil** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 8:29 am

It should go something like this:

People on the 'net giving you diagnosis suggestions: Don't listen.
Doing medical research on the 'net: Avoid it.
Doctor giving you a diagnosis: Listen.
Specialist giving you a diagnosis: Really listen.
What your body tells you: Really listen.

And if the diagnosis from multiple sources are contradictory, get more info.

-------

And for your own sake, go see someone if it doesn't improve.

Krom · Post by **Krom** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 9:05 am

Early this year I dislocated one of my ribs while working on a plumbing project (I hate galvanized pipes); I knew it was a dislocated rib because I heard/felt the pop and felt some discomfort immediately when it happened. Generally speaking dislocating or breaking a rib will give itself away like that and be pretty obvious, it won't be a silent injury that you only notice afterwards. At the worst it felt like someone twisting a knife right where it was while I was coughing from a cold, but most of the time it didn't bother me. I didn't go to the doctor because it was obvious and I know there is nothing they can do about a popped rib anyway (it healed after about a month and has been fine ever since).

So if you couldn't immediately tell it was a dislocated rib but the pain persists, you should see a doctor about it.

flip · Post by **flip** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 9:33 am

Good advice from both Foil and Krom, especially if the pain persists.

Grendel · Post by **Grendel** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 10:36 am

Foil wrote:It should go something like this:

People on the 'net giving you diagnosis suggestions: Don't listen.
Doing medical research on the 'net: Avoid it.
Doctor giving you a diagnosis: Listen.
Specialist giving you a diagnosis: Really listen.
What your body tells you: Really listen.

And if the diagnosis from multiple sources are contradictory, get more info.

-------

And for your own sake, go see someone if it doesn't improve.

x2

See a Doc to have it checked out. Have them take an X-ray. You definately exactly want to know what it is so you know what to do if it happens again.

Tunnelcat · Post by **Tunnelcat** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 1:48 pm

Ferno wrote:ok just stop stop. stop. stop. STOP. the guy doesn't have pleurisy. don't tell him anything like that TC. not ever. you'll send him into a panic. you just don't have the credentials to make any kind of diagnosis. no one here does.

Like I said before. don't EVER diagnose yourself via internet. you'll almost always end up being wrong. Just have a talk with your GP. and listen to what he says. and to hell what people say on the forums.

I know, I know. Pleurisy is pretty uncommon, and it usually makes it quite painful to breathe, and cough.

However, do you know how many times a doctor has actually helped me with a problem? The hit rate for me, or my husband, to either get the correct diagnosis, or even to be helped with some form of treatment has been around 5%. The docs like to "try" drugs from their sample cabinet until they've found one that works. One of the few things that a doc actually helped me with was a broken wrist, but that was an obvious injury. Didn't even need to X-Ray the damn thing to diagnose. IT WAS BENT OVER SIDEWAYS! DUH!

I've actually done much better with info from the net on some of my more esoteric problems, and it's cheaper too. You just have to know who and what to search on and just sift through the morass with a little common sense. There are a lot of people out there that have gone through many of the same illnesses, and there is some valuable information out there when people talk about it and compare notes. At the very least, you can go to the doctor with a little more information. Just don't let the doc know you've been Googling. It riles their ego.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 3:10 pm

What about lead poisoning?

Ferno · Post by **Ferno** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 6:53 pm

not getting into this with you tunnelcat...

Tunnelcat · Post by **Tunnelcat** » Mon Jul 09, 2012 9:25 pm

Don't care.

Foil · Post by **Foil** » Tue Jul 10, 2012 8:45 am

...Is anyone else now wondering why Messenjah hasn't been back in the last two or three days? I know he's not a high frequency poster, but I'm surprised he hasn't at least checked this thread.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Tue Jul 10, 2012 1:03 pm

A new symptom.

Grendel · Post by **Grendel** » Tue Jul 10, 2012 4:04 pm

He probably doesn't want to deal w/ Isaac.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Tue Jul 10, 2012 4:36 pm

I've given him the most answers, so I'm the most helpful. ヽ(*・ω・)ﾉ

Capm · Post by **Capm** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 11:53 am

Oh yes, lets send the broke student to a specialist for a cough and sore muscles. You people are unbelievable.

Ferno's advice is best. Go see your regular doctor. If it persists, then your doctor may determine the need for more tests,

...and don't ask these people for medical advice, what is wrong with you *slaps messenjah repeatedly*

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 2:22 pm

And don't be a baby. Ribs grow back!

no zey dont...

Ferno · Post by **Ferno** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 6:49 pm

Pandora's about the only one I would trust to give any medical advice here.

flip · Post by **flip** » Thu Jul 12, 2012 3:15 am

Pandora, If my butt hurts, can Ferno kiss it and make it better?

Alter-Fox · Post by **Alter-Fox** » Thu Jul 12, 2012 6:14 am

Ferno wrote:Pandora's about the only one I would trust to give any medical advice here.

Then Pandora would probably be the first to admit that diagnosing anything online is bound to be iffy. Bottom line: go see your doctor. We're not the people you should be asking for help.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:36 pm

Alter-Fox wrote:Then Pandora would probably be the first to admit that diagnosing anything online is bound to be iffy. Bottom line: go see your doctor. We're not the people you should be asking for help.

**Fixed** Bottom line:

1. Ask for medical advice on the net.
2. Post the outcome with pics.
3. ?!?!?
4. Profit

Ferno · Post by **Ferno** » Thu Jul 12, 2012 9:33 pm

Isaac wrote:
Alter-Fox wrote:Then Pandora would probably be the first to admit that diagnosing anything online is bound to be iffy. Bottom line: go see your doctor. We're not the people you should be asking for help.
**Fixed** Bottom line:

1. Ask for medical advice on the net.
2. Post the outcome with pics.
3. ?!?!?
4. Profit

oh god, i think I just had an aneurysm after reading that.

Alter-Fox · Post by **Alter-Fox** » Fri Jul 13, 2012 5:39 am

Well don't ask for help for it here. Go see a doctor

.
Definitely don't ask Issac.

Isaac · Post by **Isaac** » Fri Jul 13, 2012 6:29 am

Always ask ISAAC. KNOWS EVERYTHING!!!!

Tunnelcat · Post by **Tunnelcat** » Fri Jul 13, 2012 1:40 pm

flip wrote:Pandora, If my butt hurts, can Ferno kiss it and make it better?