Stabbing Chest Pain/Rightside Rib Pain

Hello everyone,
I would much appreciate your help.

I have been suffering from a stabbing chest pain for about 3 years. It has been very hard to figure out exactly what the cause of the pain is and it has been ruining my life since it started. The chest pain is spastic and not constant. It will sometimes occur one time in a day or occur throughout the entire day. It's similar to being shocked by electricity. After reading information and paying attention to my reactions to particular foods, I have come to the conclusion that it may be a gastrointestinal disorder. After 1 year of suffering from the chest pain I began to develop a soreness or swelling type of feeling around my right rib cage that comes and goes.

Doctors have put me through multiple tests because of these symptoms. EKG, CT scan (pulmonary embolism), 2 ultrasounds (1 of heart and the other of upper abdominal), pulmonary function test, an upper abdominal endoscopy, etc. These tests have come back negative, except for the endoscopy which showed minimal evidence of GERD and gastritis.

Since, the doctor who conducted the endoscopy didn't inform me of the results, I had to figure out my GERD problem by searching for information on the internet. I found GERD triggers that corresponded with situations in which I'd have the sharp chest pain. Particularly,

Caffeine, coffee
Chocolate
Ice Cream
Dairy Products
Crouching/bending over after meals
Allergies
Sleeping on my Back

Before discovering this information I had given up coffee/caffeine because it is the absolute WORST trigger of the sporadic chest pain. What's interesting is that I never have any typical heartburn symptoms. (I know what heartburn feels like.) I only experience this particular type of chest pain. Occasional dryness in my throat and bad breath.

The pain by my right rib cage has also motivated me to do some reading about the gallbladder. A GI doctor (worst doctor I've been to) told me that there was nothing wrong with my gallbladder because he did not notice stones while preforming the endoscopy. I've read that ultrasound and endoscopy tests can overlook gallbladder problems and that HIDA scans are effective in how the gallbladder is functioning. When I mentioned this to my internist he handed me Prilosec and said I should try treating the GERD/gastritis before doing any more tests. So it has been 3 weeks taking Prilosec and these symptoms have not diminished.

I have also been recently diagnosed with gout and prescribed alupurinol. Odd because I am only 23 years old. I had a kidney stone, which turned out to be a uric acid stone. The rheumatologist said he had never seen a gout patient that had pain by the ribs. He pressed on my ribs to trigger discomfort and made me take x rays, which showed nothing. The alupurinol seems to be causing gout symptoms I never had before. Slight pain in my wrists and feet.

Let me cut to the chase. Here are my questions. Can gallbladder malfunction cause excess uric acid? I have read that the gallbladder assists in removing uric acid from the body.

Why does caffeine trigger my chest pain more than other things? Also, does anyone also think the chest pain is actually from GERD?

I realize this post is confusing and all over the place. Please, let me know if you need further explanation.

Hello and Welcome to HealingWell.

Some of the most common symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, are heartburn and acid reflux. Patients experience the discomfort of heartburn in the chest and stomach when stomach acid irritates the lining of the lower esophagus, and may also note a sour taste when acid refluxes, or moves, all the way up into their mouths.

Not all people with GERD experience obvious heartburn, however. Instead, they report a wide variety of different symptoms due to the damage the acid causes to their voice box, respiratory system, teeth, and throat. Physicians refer to GERD without heartburn as "silent GERD."

I would follow thru on your GB tests and talk with your Dr. about silent GERD sx. JMHO.

Kindly,

Kitt

And to add something else. Sometimes I will not have a bowel movement for as much as 3 days.

I've never had an ERCP done. That sounds like it would be a more accurate test to determine whether or not there is a problem. I was thinking that the HIDA scan with a CCK injection could also be effective.