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Dr. Andrew Rynne
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Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Pain In Rib Cage While Deep Breathing?

Hi I'm jamie, 25 yrs old, 5 ft 11 and 11 stone, I had a bit of a bump with someone while playing cricket on friday, there was no pain at tie time or for the rest of that day but since saturday morning I have had soreness in one of my left ribs which is slowly getting worse, it hurts when I take a deep breath and cough, do you think I have broken a rib?
posted on Fri, 14 Mar 2014
Twitter Tue, 30 Aug 2016 Answered on
Twitter Tue, 30 Aug 2016 Last reviewed on
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Pulmonologist,  's  Response
Thanks for your question on Healthcare Magic.
I can understand your concern.
Yes, broken rib can cause pain on coughing and deep breathing.
But broken rib causes extreme pain and tenderness which are absent in your case, so broken rib is less likely in your case.
In my opinion, you are mostly having musculoskeletal pain.
So better to apply warm water pad on affected areas. Avoid movements causing pain. Avoid bad postures in sleep. Avoid heavyweight lifting and strenuous exercise.
Take painkiller and muscle relaxant drugs.
You will mostly improve with all these in 2-3 days. If not improving after 3 days then get done chest x ray to rule out broken rib.
Hope I have solved your query. I will be happy to help you further. Wish you good health. Thanks.
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What Causes Pain In Rib Cage While Deep Breathing?

Thanks for your question on Healthcare Magic. I can understand your concern. Yes, broken rib can cause pain on coughing and deep breathing. But broken rib causes extreme pain and tenderness which are absent in your case, so broken rib is less likely in your case. In my opinion, you are mostly having musculoskeletal pain. So better to apply warm water pad on affected areas. Avoid movements causing pain. Avoid bad postures in sleep. Avoid heavyweight lifting and strenuous exercise. Take painkiller and muscle relaxant drugs. You will mostly improve with all these in 2-3 days. If not improving after 3 days then get done chest x ray to rule out broken rib. Hope I have solved your query. I will be happy to help you further. Wish you good health. Thanks.