What Causes Mid Back Pain And The Pain Around Sternum?

Posted on Tue, 18 Feb 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Tue, 18 Feb 2014 Answered on

Fri, 7 Mar 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : I have been experiencing mid back pain, sternum pain which is heightened if I try to rub the area of sternum. I also have a burning feeling around the sternum area and at times stabbing pains in the upper abdominal area. At this very moment I also have some pain near the ribs in the back. My bones in the mid back area and sternum hurt so much worse after being in bed. I hurt so bad I have to get up. I try stretching to help ease the discomfort. Occasionally, I get a sharp stabbing in one area to the left of my spine mid back. I do have mild scoliosis. Don't know if this is relevant but I also for several weeks have pale yellow or XXXXXXX stools which mostly are soft. Thanks so much.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Rakhi Tayal (4 hours later)

Brief Answer: Due to musculoskeletal issues. Detailed Answer: Hello, Thanks for trusting us with your health concern. The mid back pain and the pain around sternum that you are having is likely to be due to musculo skeletal issues. It is not related to the pale yellow stools that you are having. The pain that you described could be due to a muscle pull or inflammation like costochondritis. Other causes also need to be ruled out like- fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis reactive arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease (such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease) calcium and vitamin D3 deficiency etc. I hope you are not having any problems related to any other joint pains. Pain killers, antiinflammatory drugs- steroids and lidocaine patch are the main treatments. You need discuss all options available with your orthopedician for proper treatment. Meanwhile doing a hot compresses will be useful pain relieving measure. You may apply a local analgesic gel on that area. Do start taking a calcium rich diet and proper calcium supplements also. Please feel free to discuss further. I will be glad to answer the follow up queries that you have. Wishing you good health. Regards. Dr. Rakhi Tayal. For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Rakhi-Tayal

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Rakhi Tayal (4 hours later)

Thanks so much! I do though have other joint pain. I have to flip from hip to hip during the night because of hip pain which I have had for numerous years. Hand joint pain. I have recently had a bout of the worse sciatic pain I have ever had. My Dad had Paget's Disease, Dry Eye and mouth and eventually Lymphoma. My mother had Asthma and Emphysema and both parents had heart problems. Auto-Immune Diseases run in my family. My neice has Raynauds which I have now developed and she has Scleroderma and Lupus. I also have Fuchs' Dystrophy and had 2 children pass away from Krabbes' Disease. At one point I was sure I had Sjogrens because of Dry Eye, Mouth and left Ear pulsating to my Heart beat. ENT said my throat is also dry and the last few years I choke sometimes on food and have had throat hoarseness which affects my singing voice. At times I am very weak and have to rest to regain strength. Carpel Tunnel also a real problem. My body hurts most of the time. It's exhausting at times but I try to stay as positive as I can. Thank you for any added thoughts you might have.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Rakhi Tayal (12 hours later)

Brief Answer: Auto-Immune Disease is likely. Detailed Answer: Hello. Thanks for writing again. This is further suggestive of an immune related cause or costochondritis. Do consult a rheumatologist for proper investigations to find out the cause. Hope my answer is helpful. If you do not have any clarifications, you can close the discussion and rate the answer. Wish you good health. Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar