Chest pain can result from many possible causes, including heart, lung, digestive system, muscle, bone, nerve, or anxiety-related issues. Some key causes include: Heart-related causes:
- Angina: chest pain due to reduced blood flow to the heart.
- Heart attack: blocked blood flow to the heart muscle.
- Aortic dissection: tear in the main artery.
- Pericarditis: inflammation of the sac around the heart.
Lung-related causes:
- Pulmonary embolism (blood clot in lung).
- Pleurisy (lung lining inflammation).
- Collapsed lung.
- Pneumonia or lung infections.
Muscle and bone causes:
- Costochondritis: inflammation of cartilage where ribs join breastbone.
- Injured ribs or muscle strain.
Other causes:
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), causing burning chest pain (heartburn).
- Panic attacks, causing chest tightness, fast heartbeat, sweating.
- Shingles, causing sharp pain and blister rash.
- Nerve pain from pinched nerves.
Because chest pain can be caused by serious conditions like heart attack or pulmonary embolism, seek emergency medical attention if pain is severe, persistent, or accompanied by symptoms like shortness of breath, sweating, dizziness, or radiating pain to arms/jaw.
