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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Could Bruising In Ribs Be Due To Persistent Coughing?

Hello, I had antibiotic resistant pneumonia for two months. The prolonged coughing caused bruising in my ribs, which my primary care doctor has been treating with celebrex. I ve had two chest x-rays, and neither have suggested fractures or anything more serious than bruising to the pained area. However, about an hour ago, I sneezed and heard a pop sound which came from the area of my ribs where the pain has been and my level of pain immediately sky rocketed. It s painful to breath, and I wasn t able to move for about 10 minutes after I sneezed. The pain has slowly dulled to a constant ache, just like what I was feeling before I started on the medication my doctor put me on for the pain I originally felt. I ve been on this medication for a month now. I haven t noticed any protrusions or bruising of the area. Should I be concerned enough to go to the hospital or should I wait until my follow up appointment with my primary care physician and let him know what happened?
posted on Tue, 10 Mar 2015
Twitter Sun, 22 Mar 2015 Answered on
Twitter Mon, 23 Mar 2015 Last reviewed on
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hello.
Welcome to HCM.
This is Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta answering your query.

See, rib fracture is very unlikely. Probably you have sprained a muscle badly. Right now, you need not do anything. Continue your pain medication your doctor has prescribed for 5-7 more days. If after 2 days also, the pain does not reduce, get a chest X-ray done and consult your doctor. In the meantime, don't stress or strain much or put pressure in the affected area.

Hope this was helpful.
Regards
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Could Bruising In Ribs Be Due To Persistent Coughing?

Hello. Welcome to HCM. This is Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta answering your query. See, rib fracture is very unlikely. Probably you have sprained a muscle badly. Right now, you need not do anything. Continue your pain medication your doctor has prescribed for 5-7 more days. If after 2 days also, the pain does not reduce, get a chest X-ray done and consult your doctor. In the meantime, don t stress or strain much or put pressure in the affected area. Hope this was helpful. Regards