It may happen that a child has chest pain at one point. This ailment is not common and therefore is rare in children, but do not be alarmed since in most cases they are muscle ailments and they do not lead to heart disease.
They are generally that teenagers those who most present medical consultations due to this chest pain. It should not be confused with cardiac pain that is even less frequent, where it could be the origin of acute pericarditis.
What are the causes of chest pain?
Chest pain is not a condition that is usually prescribed occasionally in emergency centers, but when this problem occurs you suffer worry and anxiety by the child and the parents.
It can start as a small annoyance that subsides after a few days, or continue and increase depending on the state. It usually occurs due to a respiratory infection, a muscle or bone injury or by great anxiety. Chest pain rarely occurs in children when they have heart disease.
When to see a doctor
Generally the reason for the medical consultation is derived from the pain has not stopped or has gotten worse. If the pain begins to affect daily activities or if the pain increases, that is reason enough to be evaluated by a specialist.
It is a reason for consultation when the pain appears when the child wakes up in the morning, or it appears abruptly, fever appears, has general malaise and it is difficult for him to breathe. All these signs can lead to dizziness or loss of consciousness leading to a fainting spell. Besides, it is also not usual to see the child with a lot of drowsiness and weakness.
The antecedents also count, Well, when you have had relatives with heart disease and under 40s, or if the child has already undergone a heart operation or has had a serious car accident with some type of trauma to the chest. Other cases, but less frequent is when the child has presented in some form cystic fibrosis or sickle cell anemia.
Most frequent cases of chest pain
The cases that most often revert to this pain are when it has appeared a musculoskeletal condition. The pain remits either from the bones, the muscles, or somewhere in the chest. From here he could have stayed in a little trauma or by some muscular tension, by some intense exercise, trauma or cough.
Appears in the 75 to 90% of cases with the onset of chest pain and it tends to get worse when you do physical exercise, or when you rest. The pain is relieved with the administration of ibuprofen or paracetamol.
When no pathology associated with this pain is found, the symptoms are usually a pain in the left side of the chest with some punctures and that usually remit after four to six weeks. Despite being nothing, it is known that it creates anguish in all members of the family and even restricts the movements and activity of the child.
In more extreme and little known cases it may be that the child have a heart condition. In this case we are talking about a acute pericarditis, where the membrane that surrounds the heart becomes inflamed due to a viral infection. It is not a serious disease and it is cured without complications.
If the cause has been for muscular reasons, it is necessary to recommend that the child don't try physical activitiess that can force the area, or lift heavy objects. If you are practicing any sport regularly will have to cease for a short time your activity. Or if the cause could be due to mishandling the school backpack, it would have to be adjusted correctly so that it carries the weight on both shoulders equally. However, the doctor will give you the best guidelines and instructions to achieve a better recovery.