‘Chest pain can lead to life threatening disease’

A Medical Practitioner in Abuja, Dr Felix Madu, says on Monday that chest pain can be symptom of a life-threatening disease.
Madu revealed in Abuja that chest pain could be from heart muscle if there was insufficient oxygen or blood flow.
He described chest pain as a discomfort or pain felt by a person around the front of the body between the neck and upper abdomen.
According to him, chest pain varies from one person to another as some occurred as sharp stabbing pains and others as dull aches in the chest.
However, he said that chest pain was not a disease, but a symptom of an underlying heart problem which may be life threatening or non-life threatening.
Madu explained that it could be caused by poor blood flow to the heart or the heart muscle had insufficient blood to function properly.
He said other factors such as angina, which means discomfort, pressure or squeezing of the chest could be the cause.
Madu added that chest pain could also be as a result of a strained muscle in the chest wall, or inflammation in the joints between the cartilages joining the ribs to the breast bone.
“Problems in the lungs, the esophagus, nerves, high blood pressure and blockage of blood flow to the heart could also be contributory factors to chest pain.
“The problem of the gallbladder and stomach ulcers could also predispose a person to chest pain.
“Gastrointestinal problem, anxiety and panic attack could also cause chest pain.
“Lung problems, pneumonia and inflammation of the membrane surrounding the lungs caused by infection could also cause chest pain.
“Also, shingles, a disease caused by chicken pox, virus can also cause chest pain.’’
The medical practitioner said that pain and swelling of the breast, usually caused by infection during breastfeeding, could also cause chest pain.
Madu said pulmonary embolism, a blockage in the blood vessel that carries blood to the heart and lungs could also predispose a person to chest pain.
He, however, said that treatment and management of chest pain depended on the cause after evaluation and diagnosis.
He, therefore, recommended the use of medication, non-invasive procedures and surgery in treating chest pain-related heart disease.
Madu also advised that physical examination and testing was necessary to treat and manage the condition.
The physician enjoined patients with the condition to seek early medical help to arrest the situation and prevent complications.