Tietze syndrome
What is it?
Tietze's syndrome is also called costochondritis. A rib (costa in Latin) consists mostly of bone, but on the front, towards the sternum, it is a small part which consists of cartilage (kondros in Greek). The suffix-it in medicine means inflammation. With costochondritis, they mean an inflammatory condition of the transition between cartilage and bone in one or more ribs.
The disease is rare but most commonly affects women of 20-40 years of age. The cause is unknown, but we know that the disease is harmless and heal spontaneously.
Tietze syndrome symptoms
What are the symptoms?
The inflammation causes pain in the infected area. Cartilage and bone swollen and tender. Ribs move when we breathe, when we cough or sneeze, and generally when the body is in motion. The pain is triggered by movement, and is experienced in many cases as intense and brief seizures. In other cases, the pain can be more chronic with constant work in the inflamed area. The pain may be aggravated by deep breathing, coughing, sneezing, and you can experience the pain radiating to the arm or shoulder.
At most only one or a few ribs attack. Most commonly found changes in rib number 1 or 2, calculated above.
Tietze syndrome diagnosis
How is the diagnosis?
The diagnosis is made based on medical history and physical exam. The pain localized to the ribs on the front of the chest, and in typical cases is a tender bump corresponding to the painful area.
Tietze syndrome treatment
What is the treatment?The goal of treatment is to reduce pain and inflammation while waiting for the condition should heal by itself. Duration is difficult to predict. It can vary from days right up to the next. There are medications that work both painkillers and anti-inflammatory, so-called NSAIDs. These can get a prescription for your doctor, and such a drug might be useful for short periods with much pain.
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