Costochondritis Quiz
Check your symptoms and
find possible causes with AI for free
Worried about your symptoms?
Start the Costochondritis test with our free AI Symptom Checker.
This will help us personalize your assessment.
By starting the symptom checker, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
Have chest pain
Pinpoint chest pain
Swelling of the affected area
Chest pain when I breathe
Right side chest pain
Chest pain on left side
Tightness in the chest
Not seeing your symptoms? No worries!
What is Costochondritis?
Inflammation of the cartilage connecting ribs to the breastbone. Causes include physical strain, prolonged vigorous coughing, and viral infections; though in many cases, no clear cause is found.
Typical Symptoms of Costochondritis
- Chest pain when coughing or during deep breathing
- Chest pain
- Left-sided chest pain
- Rib pain
- Right sided chest pain
- Pain that runs along the side of one rib
- Pain in the upper left abdomen
- Moving the arm / shoulder worsens the pain
Diagnostic Questions for Costochondritis
Your doctor may ask these questions to check for this disease:
- Do you have sharp chest pain when coughing or taking a deep breath?
- Are you experiencing chest pain?
- Do you have pain on the left side of your chest?
- Are your ribs hurting?
- Do you have chest pain on the right side?
Treatment of Costochondritis
This condition resolves by itself, but may take several months to fully resolve. Medications like painkillers and anti-inflammatory pills can speed up healing. Simple measures like warm compresses and decreasing physical strain can also help.
Reviewed By:
Scott Nass, MD, MPA, FAAFP, AAHIVS (Primary Care)
Dr. Nass received dual medical degrees from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Charles R. Drew University in Medicine and Science. He completed Family Medicine residency at Ventura County Medical Center with subsequent fellowships at Ventura, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, George Washington University, and University of California-Irvine. He holds faculty appointments at Keck School of Medicine of USC, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, and Western University of Health Sciences.
Yoshinori Abe, MD (Internal Medicine)
Dr. Abe graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 2015. He completed his residency at the Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Longevity Medical Center. He co-founded Ubie, Inc. in May 2017, where he currently serves as CEO & product owner at Ubie. Since December 2019, he has been a member of the Special Committee for Activation of Research in Emergency AI of the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine. | | Dr. Abe has been elected in the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Healthcare & Science category.
Content updated on Mar 31, 2024
Following the Medical Content Editorial Policy
Was this page helpful?
Tell your friends about us.
We would love to help them too.
Think you might have
Costochondritis?
Try a symptom check testHow Ubie Can Help You
With a free 3-min Costochondritis quiz, powered by Ubie's AI and doctors, find possible causes of your symptoms.
This questionnaire is customized to your situation and symptoms, including the following personal information:
Biological Sex - helps us provide relevant suggestions for male vs. female conditions.
Age - adjusts our guidance based on any age-related health factors.
History - considers past illnesses, surgeries, family history, and lifestyle choices.
Your symptoms
Our AI
Your report
Your personal report will tell you
✔ When to see a doctor
✔︎ What causes your symptoms
✔︎ Treatment information etc.
People with similar symptoms also use Ubie's symptom checker to find possible causes
- Chest pain all over
- Tight feeling in the chest
- Chest pain caused by exercise
- Pain around the rib cage
- Radiating chest pain
- Pain in the rib
- Chest pain at night
- Tightening in the chest
See full list
Symptoms Related to Costochondritis
Diseases Related to Costochondritis
FAQs
Q.
Costochondritis in Women 30-45: Symptoms, Relief & Next Steps
A.
Costochondritis in women 30 to 45 is a common, usually benign inflammation where the ribs meet the breastbone that causes sharp or aching chest pain, tenderness to touch, and pain that worsens with deep breathing, movement, coughing, or lifting, yet it can resemble heart pain. Relief often comes with rest and activity changes, short courses of anti-inflammatory medicines, heat or ice, gentle stretching, posture fixes, stress management, and sometimes physical therapy, but seek urgent care now if you have chest pressure, pain spreading to the jaw, neck, or arm, shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, dizziness, or fainting. There are several factors to consider. See below to understand more.
References:
* Stochkendahl, M. J., et al. (2018). Clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and management of musculoskeletal chest wall pain: A systematic review. *European Journal of Pain*, 22(1), 1-17.
* Shmagin, Y., et al. (2020). Chest Wall Pain: Diagnosis and Management. *Current Pain and Headache Reports*, 24(7), 33.
* Knoedler, P., & Knoedler, D. (2021). Chest Pain—When it is not the Heart: A Review of Noncardiac Chest Pain. *Journal of Clinical Medicine*, 10(23), 5670.
* An, C., et al. (2023). Manual therapy and rehabilitation for chronic anterior chest wall pain: A systematic review. *Musculoskeletal Science and Practice*, 64, 102715.
* Proulx, A. M., & Zryd, T. W. (2009). Costochondritis: Diagnosis and treatment. *American Family Physician*, 80(6), 617-620.
Q.
"Does My Rib Pain Mean Something Serious?" When to Worry (and When It’s Just Inflammation)
A.
Rib pain is often not dangerous, most commonly due to costochondritis, muscle strain, posture issues, or anxiety-related tension, and these usually respond to rest, heat or ice, gentle stretching, and appropriate over-the-counter anti-inflammatories. There are several factors that change what to do next, so see the complete guidance below. Get urgent care for warning signs like shortness of breath, chest pressure spreading to the arm or jaw, fainting, fever, coughing up blood, or pain after injury, and speak with a clinician if symptoms persist, worsen, or you are unsure of the cause.
References:
* Stochkendahl, M. J., Christensen, H. W., Vach, W., & Cleland, J. (2018). Differential diagnosis of chest wall pain. *The Clinical Journal of Pain*, *34*(10), 960-966.
* Schnabel, B. M. (2020). Costochondritis and Tietze Syndrome: A Review. *Current Rheumatology Reports*, *22*(8), 1-8.
* Shah, A., Verma, K. C., Goel, V., & Singh, R. (2020). Chest wall tumours: a differential diagnosis. *Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Trauma*, *11*(3), 502-506.
* Flagel, L., Leclère, F. M., Bory, B., & Charles, N. (2020). Rib fractures: Review of diagnosis and management. *Orthopaedics & Traumatology: Surgery & Research*, *106*(7), S229-S235.
* Gregory, P. C., & Biswas, A. (2020). Assessment of chronic chest wall pain: A review. *Pain Practice*, *20*(4), 438-449.
Q.
That Sharp Pain Under Your Left Bra Wire: Why Your Ribs Are Screaming at You
A.
Most sharp pain under the left bra wire is musculoskeletal, commonly costochondritis, bra fit pressure, muscle strain, or chest wall nerve irritation, and it often eases with rest, heat or ice, posture and bra adjustments, gentle stretching, and appropriate over the counter anti inflammatory medication. Still, because left sided chest pain can occasionally signal something serious, seek urgent care for symptoms like shortness of breath, dizziness or fainting, sweating or nausea, pain spreading to the arm, jaw, or back, fever, injury, or persistent or worsening pain; see the full details below to understand important nuances that could affect your next steps.
References:
* Verdonk, R., Van den Broecke, R. Costochondritis. Rev Med Brux. 2018 Sep;39(4):254-257. PMID: 30280459.
* Stochkendahl, M. J., Christensen, H. W., Vach, W., & Axelsen, M. H. Differential diagnosis of chest pain: a systematic review of the literature on diagnostic accuracy. Chiropractic & Manual Therapies, 2018;26(1), 16. PMID: 29725516.
* Al-Refai, A., Alkhrisheh, M. A., & Bakhit, A. Intercostal Neuralgia: A Review of Etiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment. Pain and Therapy, 2020;9(5), 971-980. PMID: 32959648.
* Fotiadis, A., Shah, V., & Kanakaris, N. K. Slipping rib syndrome: a review of current literature. European Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery & Traumatology, 2020;30(5), 793-799. PMID: 32080646.
* Zecevic, A., Kucuk, A., Kadic, A., & Kadic, N. Tietze syndrome: a systematic review. Journal of musculoskeletal disorders and treatment, 2020;6(1). PMID: 32984578.
Ubie is supervised by 50+ medical experts worldwide
Our symptom checker AI is continuously refined with input from experienced physicians, empowering them to make more accurate diagnoses.
Ubie is recognized by healthcare and tech leaders
“World’s Best Digital
Health Companies”
Newsweek 2024
“Best With AI”
Google Play Best of 2023
“Best in Class”
Digital Health Awards 2023 (Quarterfinalist)
Which is the best Symptom Checker?
Ubie’s symptom checker demonstrated a Top-10 hit accuracy of 71.6%, surpassing the performance of several leading symptom checkers in the market, which averaged around 60% accuracy in similar assessments.
Link to full study:
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.08.29.24312810v1References
Mott T, Jones G, Roman K. Costochondritis: Rapid Evidence Review. Am Fam Physician. 2021 Jul 1;104(1):73-78. PMID: 34264599.
https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2021/0700/p73.htmlProulx AM, Zryd TW. Costochondritis: diagnosis and treatment. Am Fam Physician. 2009 Sep 15;80(6):617-20. PMID: 19817327.
https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2009/0915/p617.htmlSchumann JA, Sood T, Parente JJ. Costochondritis. 2021 Jul 10. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022 Jan–. PMID: 30422526.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532931/Yoshiyama N, Tsuneyoshi S, Nishi JI, Ishii H. Infective costochondritis and multiple abscesses in a healthy adult. BMJ Case Rep. 2021 Jan 15;14(1):e240948. doi: 10.1136/bcr-2020-240948. PMID: 33452067; PMCID: PMC7813321.
https://casereports.bmj.com/content/14/1/e240948