If you have sudden, sharp chest pain that resolves quickly, or if you are worried about having a heart attack, know that a wide range of causes may be the reason for your chest pain, from non-serious causes such as a simple muscle ache to a heart attack.
Sudden and sharp chest pain that resolves quickly, if it takes less than a minute, is often related to non-cardiac causes of chest pain, including musculoskeletal problems.
In the following we will tell you more about “Sudden sharp pain in chest that goes away quickly”
If you have unbearable chest pain for more than a few minutes, go to a well-equipped medical center or call an emergency room instead of looking for the cause yourself.
what you will read next :
When does chest pain and discomfort have a heart cause?
Even the most experienced cardiologists cannot quickly differentiate between cardiac and non-cardiac causes of chest pain in all cases and need to be examined. Determining the cause of chest pain is sometimes really difficult and challenging.
The following symptoms will be more in favor of cardiac origin:
- Feeling of pressure, burning, stiffness and heaviness on the chest
- Pain similar to the feeling of being crushed
- Pain in the back, neck, jaw, shoulders, and one or both arms.
- Pain that lasts more than a few minutes, not pain that resolves in a matter of seconds
- Pain that is exacerbated by physical activity
- Pain that lasts for a few minutes and resolves and reappears, especially after physical activity.
- Shortness of breath
- Cold sweat
- Lightheadedness
- Vertigo
- Nausea
- Vomit
- Feeling of heartbeat
What is angina pectoris?
Most heart attacks occur due to obstruction of the blood flow pathway, such as narrowing of the arteries or the presence of a clot blocking the arteries. Angina is a term used by doctors to describe chest pain caused by poor blood flow to the heart.
Is there a relationship between the duration of chest pain and the occurrence of a heart attack?
Except the quality of the pain, another issue is the time period of the chest pain If you only have chest pain for a few seconds and the pain goes away after a few seconds, do not worry. It is important to know that chest pain caused by heart problems lasts at least five minutes and usually does not last more than twenty minutes and finally thirty minutes. Sudden chest pain that resolves quickly can often not be considered serious and high-risk in the group of heart pain. Pain that appears or intensifies after physical activity but resolves with rest can also be a sign of angina pectoris.
But the diagnosis will not always be easy, so consult your doctor.
Causes of transient chest pain
Musculoskeletal pain is one of the most common causes of sharp and sudden chest pain that resolves quickly.
These pains are related to the bones and muscles that cover your chest.
These include:
- Costochondritis:
In this case, the cartilage of the chest, especially the cartilage where the ribs connect to the sternum, becomes inflamed and painful.
- Sore muscle:
Chronic pain syndromes such as fibromyalgia can cause persistent chest pain that is related to the chest muscles.
- Rib damage:
- Rib bumps
- rib fractures
They can cause chest pain that will get worse when you breathe deeply
In what cases should we go to a medical center with chest pain?
- Feeling of sudden pain, pressure and heaviness in the chest that lasts for at least a few minutes
- Pain in the arm, shoulder, jaw, back, and even pain that extends to the navel, not the lower
- Changes in blood pressure that are associated with chest pain
- Heart rate changes
- Dizziness and lightheadedness
- Ague
- Cough
The pain that has lasted
In the following cases, sharp and sudden chest pains that resolve quickly may occur that are not a cause for concern:
- Pushing and moving heavy objects
- Women during menstruation
- Gastric acid reflux into the esophagus
- Stimulation with polluted air and stimuli