Is it a cracked rib or muscle strain pain in back and shortness of breathe?!


Question:

Is it a cracked rib or muscle strain pain in back and shortness of breathe?

I have a constant pain in upper back, sore to touch and it causes shortnes of breathe. I also can not lay on my left side.It happened when I fell down the stairs.


Answers:

Besides possibly having a cracked rib from your fall down the stairs, you could possibly have a pneumothorax (punctured lung)---which would explain the shortness of breath. Shortness of breath is serious, and besides the pain you are having, I would get in to a doctor ASAP for an assessment. There can be small pneumothoraxes or larger ones.
Also, even if it is just a cracked rib, or a bruised muscle, etc....the shortness of breath is what you need to worry about, and get checked out. If it happened a few days ago, then a person would tend to not breath as deep or move as much with the pain and soreness--which could lead to decreased ventilation and cause pneumonia, which could in turn cause shortness of breath.
The shortness of breath could even be from anxiety related to the pain when you touch the sore area, and breathing fast is a symptom of anxiety also.
So, as you see, there are many things it could be, besides a back injury (vertebrae)---like the previous answer.
Please, go see a doctor, and make sure and have a chest x-ray done for sure! That is the only way to rule out anything serious. It is very important. Take care of yourself. : )




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