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I dont know if this has anything to do with epilepsy, or not... but here it goes....
It all started in the July of this year. I started to experience some pain, which was center, where your esophugus and stomach would be. On August 7th, I went into the ER because I was having such a hard time with the pain and breathing. They did a ECG and ruled out everything was good with my heart. They made me drink this white stuff to numb my esophugus and it helped with the pain. They dx'd me with GERD. Gave me some 20mg prescription medication (generic for prilosec) and told me to have a follow up with my primary care dr in a few days. I go in for my follow up, still having the pain, but not as bad. My dr prescribed me 40mg tablets of the same medication. I took that, and within a week or two, I was back to normal. Come in October, mid october I'd say... I wanted to see if it was ok to stop taking the prescription since my dr said once the pain goes away, I could try to stop it and see if it was healed. So I stopped, went for two days feeling ok, then the tenderness in the same area started up, followed by extream pain again. I went back to taking the prescription medication, and then a week or so later, I had bad chest pain, coughing, etc. Went to our local linc care (urgent care clinic) and was told I had Acute Bronchitis. Gave me some medication to help, and had another follow up with my primary care dr. THey did some xrays and said it was healing. But the pain that I was having prior, went from my center area to my left side of my chest. By my collar bone, shoulder area, and breast area. The pain was so bad I thought it had something to do with my heart. But due to the ECG being normal, my dr said to set up a time with a GI specialist. A dr that specializes in heartburn. Which I did, but cant get in til December 15th! In the meantime, the pain was so bad, I went back to my drs and he had another dr come in to examine me. She had me lay down on the table, feet together, and from standing at the bottom of me, looking face up at me, she said my left side of my body was higher than my right side. She then tells me to take my left arm and hold it out by the table, kind of stretches it back over my head and tells me to hold it there for 10 seconds. As Im doing this, Im feeling the pain go to the same place Ive been having the pain. Then she brings my arm back down, and tells me to rest for a minute. Then has me do it again, only this time, she tries to bend my fingers back, and the pain was so extream I about burst into tears! She said based off of those results, I had Thoracic Outlet Symdrome.
Here's a link that tells more about it.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002406/
Thoracic outlet syndrome is a rare condition that involves pain in the neck and shoulder, numbness and tingling of the fingers, and a weak grip. The thoracic outlet is the area between the rib cage and collar bone.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Blood vessels and nerves coming from the spine or major blood vessels of the body pass through a narrow space near the shoulder and collarbone on their way to the arms. As they pass by or through the collarbone (clavicle) and upper ribs, they may not have enough space.
Pressure (compression) on these blood vessels or nerves can cause symptoms in the arms or hands. Problems with the nerves cause almost all cases of thoracic outlet syndrome.
Compression can be caused by an extra cervical rib (above the first rib) or an abnormal tight band connecting the spinal vertebra to the rib. Patients often have injured the area in the past or overused the shoulder.
People with long necks and droopy shoulders may be more likely to develop this condition because of extra pressure on the nerves and blood vessels.
Symptoms
Symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome may include:
Pain, numbness, and tingling in the pinky and ring fingers, and the inner forearm
Pain and tingling in the neck and shoulders (carrying something heavy may make the pain worse)
Signs of poor circulation in the hand or forearm (a bluish color, cold hands, or a swollen arm)
Weakness of the muscles in the hand
Signs and tests
When you lift something, the arm may look pale due to pressure on the blood vessels.
The diagnosis is typically made after the doctor takes a careful history and performs a physical examination. Sometimes the following tests are done to confirm the diagnosis:
Electromyography (EMG)
CT angiogram
MRI
Nerve conduction velocity study
X-ray
Tests are also done to make sure that there are no other problems, such as carpal tunnel syndrome or a damaged nerve due to problems in the cervical (neck) spine.
Treatment
When thoracic outlet syndrome affects the nerves, the first treatment is always physical therapy. Physical therapy helps strengthen the shoulder muscles, improve range of motion, and promote better posture. Treatment may also include pain medication.
If there is pressure on the vein, your doctor may give you a blood thinner to dissolve the blood clot. This will help reduce swelling in your arm.
You may need surgery if physical therapy and changes in activity do not improve your symptoms. The surgeon may make a cut either under your armpit or just above your collarbone.
During surgery, the following may be done:
An extra rib is removed and certain muscles are cut.
A section of the first rib is removed to release pressure in the area.
Bypass surgery is done to reroute blood around the compression or remove the area that is causing the symptoms.
Your doctor may also suggest other alternatives, including angioplasty if the artery is narrowed.
Expectations (prognosis)
Having the first rib removed and the fibrous bands broken may relieve symptoms in certain patients. Surgery can be successful in 50% to 80% of patients. Conservative approaches using physical therapy are helpful for many patients.
At least 5% of patients have symptoms that return after surgery.
Has anyone experienced this before? The dr said it is common with people who have seizures. I just wondered what the heck to do now. The dr told me about physical therapy, but I dont know if can afford that now. They did run some blood tests to make sure it wasnt bronchitis, etc and that all came back normal today. So I dont know what to do now....
It all started in the July of this year. I started to experience some pain, which was center, where your esophugus and stomach would be. On August 7th, I went into the ER because I was having such a hard time with the pain and breathing. They did a ECG and ruled out everything was good with my heart. They made me drink this white stuff to numb my esophugus and it helped with the pain. They dx'd me with GERD. Gave me some 20mg prescription medication (generic for prilosec) and told me to have a follow up with my primary care dr in a few days. I go in for my follow up, still having the pain, but not as bad. My dr prescribed me 40mg tablets of the same medication. I took that, and within a week or two, I was back to normal. Come in October, mid october I'd say... I wanted to see if it was ok to stop taking the prescription since my dr said once the pain goes away, I could try to stop it and see if it was healed. So I stopped, went for two days feeling ok, then the tenderness in the same area started up, followed by extream pain again. I went back to taking the prescription medication, and then a week or so later, I had bad chest pain, coughing, etc. Went to our local linc care (urgent care clinic) and was told I had Acute Bronchitis. Gave me some medication to help, and had another follow up with my primary care dr. THey did some xrays and said it was healing. But the pain that I was having prior, went from my center area to my left side of my chest. By my collar bone, shoulder area, and breast area. The pain was so bad I thought it had something to do with my heart. But due to the ECG being normal, my dr said to set up a time with a GI specialist. A dr that specializes in heartburn. Which I did, but cant get in til December 15th! In the meantime, the pain was so bad, I went back to my drs and he had another dr come in to examine me. She had me lay down on the table, feet together, and from standing at the bottom of me, looking face up at me, she said my left side of my body was higher than my right side. She then tells me to take my left arm and hold it out by the table, kind of stretches it back over my head and tells me to hold it there for 10 seconds. As Im doing this, Im feeling the pain go to the same place Ive been having the pain. Then she brings my arm back down, and tells me to rest for a minute. Then has me do it again, only this time, she tries to bend my fingers back, and the pain was so extream I about burst into tears! She said based off of those results, I had Thoracic Outlet Symdrome.
Here's a link that tells more about it.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002406/
Thoracic outlet syndrome is a rare condition that involves pain in the neck and shoulder, numbness and tingling of the fingers, and a weak grip. The thoracic outlet is the area between the rib cage and collar bone.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Blood vessels and nerves coming from the spine or major blood vessels of the body pass through a narrow space near the shoulder and collarbone on their way to the arms. As they pass by or through the collarbone (clavicle) and upper ribs, they may not have enough space.
Pressure (compression) on these blood vessels or nerves can cause symptoms in the arms or hands. Problems with the nerves cause almost all cases of thoracic outlet syndrome.
Compression can be caused by an extra cervical rib (above the first rib) or an abnormal tight band connecting the spinal vertebra to the rib. Patients often have injured the area in the past or overused the shoulder.
People with long necks and droopy shoulders may be more likely to develop this condition because of extra pressure on the nerves and blood vessels.
Symptoms
Symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome may include:
Pain, numbness, and tingling in the pinky and ring fingers, and the inner forearm
Pain and tingling in the neck and shoulders (carrying something heavy may make the pain worse)
Signs of poor circulation in the hand or forearm (a bluish color, cold hands, or a swollen arm)
Weakness of the muscles in the hand
Signs and tests
When you lift something, the arm may look pale due to pressure on the blood vessels.
The diagnosis is typically made after the doctor takes a careful history and performs a physical examination. Sometimes the following tests are done to confirm the diagnosis:
Electromyography (EMG)
CT angiogram
MRI
Nerve conduction velocity study
X-ray
Tests are also done to make sure that there are no other problems, such as carpal tunnel syndrome or a damaged nerve due to problems in the cervical (neck) spine.
Treatment
When thoracic outlet syndrome affects the nerves, the first treatment is always physical therapy. Physical therapy helps strengthen the shoulder muscles, improve range of motion, and promote better posture. Treatment may also include pain medication.
If there is pressure on the vein, your doctor may give you a blood thinner to dissolve the blood clot. This will help reduce swelling in your arm.
You may need surgery if physical therapy and changes in activity do not improve your symptoms. The surgeon may make a cut either under your armpit or just above your collarbone.
During surgery, the following may be done:
An extra rib is removed and certain muscles are cut.
A section of the first rib is removed to release pressure in the area.
Bypass surgery is done to reroute blood around the compression or remove the area that is causing the symptoms.
Your doctor may also suggest other alternatives, including angioplasty if the artery is narrowed.
Expectations (prognosis)
Having the first rib removed and the fibrous bands broken may relieve symptoms in certain patients. Surgery can be successful in 50% to 80% of patients. Conservative approaches using physical therapy are helpful for many patients.
At least 5% of patients have symptoms that return after surgery.
Has anyone experienced this before? The dr said it is common with people who have seizures. I just wondered what the heck to do now. The dr told me about physical therapy, but I dont know if can afford that now. They did run some blood tests to make sure it wasnt bronchitis, etc and that all came back normal today. So I dont know what to do now....
onder: