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Pleurisy or cracked rib?

Posted , 3 users are following.

rachel14373
rachel14373

I wrote a couple months ago after a Pleurisy diagnosis following chest x-rays. As it turns out, it was a cracked rib that I had, NOT viral Pleurisy as the Dr had suspected. The cracked rib did not show on the chest x-rays, but I was told they don't always show. It took about 5 weeks for the pain to go away. Sometimes I can still feel it slightly when I do certain things. Just wanted to follow up in case anyone else had the same misdiagnosis.

2 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • janni79600
    janni79600 rachel14373

    Posted

    That is good to know. My brother, who is a Dr., has wondered if I didn't have a cracked or fractured rib since the pain has lasted so long. How did they finally figure out you had a cracked rib? I would love to be done with this uncomfortable sensation that continues in the area around the last rib.  Hope you are feeling back to normal now.
    • rachel14373
      rachel14373 janni79600

      Posted

      Hi Janni,

      The Dr figured it out when the pain lasted so long and I went in to see him for a follow up appt.  I told him about how rowing on our rowing machine at the one week mark set me back to the pain I had in the very beginning.  It was so painful that I couldn't sleep on my back at all, and to roll over was quite painful.  I also could feel tenderness all along one rib from my sternum to my side.  It's completely healed now, but it took about 5 weeks.  Hope you feel better soon too! 

    • rachel14373
      rachel14373 janni79600

      Posted

      I should mention that initially I couldn't tell there was pain all along one rib, it was just downright painfull to take a deep breath, cough, or sneeze...horrible pain.  Then the chest x-ray wasn't definitive about the fracture, so my Dr just guessed that the virus that I had when I got the pain caused Pluerisy.  No harm done.  The treatment would have been the same either way, just take pain meds and wait it out.
  • janni79600
    janni79600 rachel14373

    Posted

    Thank you, Rachel. I returned to the Dr. and he found I had had a fractured rib, besides the pneumonia. It is still painful and he prescribed a gel to rub on the area and a pain medication. Thank you for sharing your experience.
  • mudskippa
    mudskippa rachel14373

    Posted

    Thanks Rachel. This is sure to help someone else. I had severe pneumonia several months ago, mainly on my right hand side, I developed pain on my left side recently, went for an xray and there was a dark spot on the LEFT side. I've been told everything from a pneumonia flare-up to a cracked rib to pleurisy to goodness knows what. No one seems to know what it is (I don't remember cracking a rib or pulling a  muscle) I'm on painkillers and have a GP appt in mid-Jan. Just shows Drs can disagree and be wrong. They are human too. Glad you feel better now.

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