What Causes Prolonged Pain In The Upper Left Muscle In The Arm?

Posted on Thu, 30 Jan 2014

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

Thu, 30 Jan 2014 Answered on

Wed, 19 Feb 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : I have been having for several months pain in the upper left muscle in my arm? Any suggestions as to what is causing my pain. The muscle is swollen and hard. I saw the heart doctor approximately 3 months ago and told him about the pain in my left arm. He send me to get at x-ray but nothing showed. I also did an ekg and eco gram for him and he said I did not have to do a stress test. I walk on a treadmill every day and do not get short of breath. Now I only walk 3 miles an hour and walk for about 35 to 40 minutes a day

Answered by Dr. Indranil Ghosh (8 hours later)

Brief Answer: Please refer below Detailed Answer: Hi Thanks for your query. As the muscle there is swollen and hard, I think that is the cause (inflammation of the muscle). It would not show up on XRay. A MRI scan may show up the problem. As the ECG and ECHO are normal and no classic symptoms of coronary disease (like chest pain on exertion) are present, it is unlikely to be cardiac disease. You may need to consult an orthopedician for proper diagnosis. Hope I have answered your query. I will be available to answer further followup queries, if any.

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