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← Return to Palpitation and Chest pain?
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I too have had chest pain caused by muscle spasms and stretching along w/ left arm/ pain and when I turn my Neck I feel as if I could Pass out. @jenniferhunter
As I've been reading more of your progression on your diagnosis Jennifer, I honestly feel I need to address the TOS To Mayo when I go, even though my family Practitioner say, my T Spine is in good standing, but Cervical Radiculopathy/Spinal Stenosis is to the extreme. Back In January 2023 I was working again ended up in ER W/ what totally felt as a Heart Attack, my manager had to drive me, and after all heart testing everything was Good and they even recommended Stress Test, Echo. EKG And so on. Later to discover it was From my C-Spine and my Ribs are always out of Place and Chiropractic discovered my pelvis is always shifted @ 40 degree and has to be realigned, which then can and does cause pressure in ribs/ lungs, and my breathing, hence, feeling like a Heart Attack.. All this being stated will be Addressed @ Mayo. I am so Thankful for all on here that share their Trial and Tribulations, and continue to respond respectfully.
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@wil24 Susan, Yes, asking about TOS while you are at Mayo is a good idea. They will refer you for an evaluation to a vascular lab. I think the doctor I saw there was Dr Shepherd. It was in the Gonda building and so was my neurosurgeon, so it was easy to get there.
I am similar to you in that my pelvis goes out of alignment with one side being pulled forward due to tightness on one side of the body from my neck to my pelvis. It is tight through the rib cage and restricts expansion. This is what my physical therapist works on with stretching and Myofascial Release to loosen everything and get it back where it belongs.
TOS is not a spine problem, but it occurs next to the spine where nerves leave to spine and travel between scalene muscles and then between the collar bone and rib cage. My TOS was aggravated by the cervical spine surgery causing inflammation in the same area, and I had to bear with it for awhile in healing before I could go back to PT. My surgeon did let the PT address breathing issues about 2 months after surgery with instructions not to touch my neck. It did cause pain as scar tissue was tightening up after surgery. I finally put my hands on my chest near the collar bone and pulled down to alleviate the pain by stretching it, all without touching or moving my neck. I was in a neck brace and no spine hardware waiting for the fusion process to start. There is surgery for TOS in some circumstances, but it usually isn’t recommended because scar tissue from the surgery can make it worse. With cervical spine surgery, you may have increased tightness anyway in close proximity to the thoracic outlet (brachial plexus) area. That would be something to ask about. It sounds like the spine issue is the bigger problem and that is how it was for me which they determined during the evaluation.
FYI another reason for palpitations or Afib could be high levels of thyroid hormones and anxiety to a degree. They will probably check the thyroid in your work up.
If you have questions about this, please ask.
Jennifer