Chest pain when breathing? Causes and treatment

Modified Mar 05, 2024 09:24 GMT

Do not overlook chest pain wehn breathing (Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik)

Whether you are inhaling or exhaling, chest pains can be the result of serious medical conditions. Finding it hard to breathe can depend on factors like altitude, air quality, and what position your body is in. Sometimes we even suffer from chest pain while we are exercising and we overtire ourselves and find it extremely hard to breathe.

You can even be having a heart attack or this pain can be because of underlying conditions like chest infections, asthma, or cancer. It is always better to visit a doctor when you feel like you can’t respire properly and every time you breathe, it hurts.

What can lead to chest pain when breathing?

Chest pain when breathing can be because of underlying health conditions (Image by wayhomestudio on Freepik)

There can be multiple reasons like injuries of the heart or lungs or any other organs, upon which you’ll have chest pain.

This type of pain will stay with you along with cough, fever, and shortness of breath. You may also feel it getting worse every time you take a deep breath and can be both short and long-term.

Even if you think that the pain is minor, do not ignore it. Go to a doctor and find out the reason as it can be because of something very serious.

Let us now dive deep into the causes of this pain.

1. Heart attack

You can have a future heart attack because of chest pain when breathing (Image by Lifestylememory on Freepik)

The heart lies near the lungs and works closely with it, so when it doesn’t get enough blood, the heart also doesn’t get ample oxygen.

If you experience chest pain when breathing, it can be because of heart-related issues. This pain will be in the center of the chest, or on the left side and will feel like a heartburn.

You might also suffer from shortness of breath and this pain can come and go till it is treated. Therefore it is better to treat chest pain immediately so that there is no further damage to the heart and muscles.

High blood pressure can also be a cause of this discomfort, as it can lead to pulmonary embolism, in which there is a blockage in one of the arteries in the lungs.

2. COVID-19

COVID-19 can be a major cause (Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik)

People who suffered from this virus experienced chest pain when breathing, which is a symptom of being affected by COVID-19. It can also be a post-COVID-19 symptom- because there can be an infection of the pleura or other cardiac issues, leading to painful respiration.

3. Infected lungs

Infected or damaged lungs can cause chest pain when breathing (Image by kjpargeter on Freepik)

If you have serious conditions like lung cancer, asthma, or other infections including pneumonia, influenza, or tuberculosis, it can cause pain when breathing. Since the pleura is irritated because of infection, it can lead to chest pain which is often long-term.

4. Panic attacks

Panic attacks can cause such pain (Image by Pawel Czerwinski/Unsplash)

These are intense episodes, where you feel like you cannot breathe and there is weight on your chest that leads to a feeling of discomfort. Panic attacks often last for 5-10 minutes and can cause chest pain along with sweating, palpitations, and increased heartbeat.

Treatment

Several Imaging tests will come to your rescue (Image by gpointstudio on Freepik)

Your doctor can ask you to go for a chest x-ray, a CT scan, other imaging studies, blood tests, and various forms of diagnosis, to find the cause. This pain can be eliminated with surgery, antibiotics, or anticoagulants, depending on the type.

Meanwhile here is what you can do

Try Yoga for better breathing (Image by javi_indy on Freepik)

Try Yoga or mindfulness techniques to improve your breathing.
Running, jogging, or cycling can be done at lower intensities as staying fit is always the key.
Do not smoke cigarettes or vape, as it leads to further damage to the lungs.
Try different positions that can help you breathe while standing up, sitting down, or sleeping.
Try to lose weight as it can lower your blood pressure and decrease your cholesterol levels, which in fact will help you to breathe better.
Do not visit places that are polluted, or can have toxic substances in the air or fumes.
At home, consider getting an air purifier as it can help you to breathe better quality air.

Get yourself and your family an air purifier (Image by freepik)

If you experience pain when breathing, do not think twice before going to the doctor. Get yourself checked so that you can always take a deep breath and relax.