Chest pain when coughing is a common symptom of many health issues.
Knowing the signs and symptoms can help you seek prompt and potentially life-saving care.
FG Trade / Getty Images
1.
FG Trade / Getty Images
Your bronchi can swell and make mucus when they become inflamed.
Symptoms of acute bronchitis include:
2.
Common Cold
Thecommon coldis a mild infection of the upper respiratory tract (involving the nose and throat).
Symptoms of a cold include:
3.
Asthma causes the airways to spontaneously constrict (narrow), making it difficult to breathe.
Symptoms ofasthmainclude:
4.
Intercostal Muscle Strain
Anintercostal muscle straininvolves the long, thin muscles that run between your ribs.
Strains of this sort typically occur in athletes due to overstretching of the intercostal muscles.
It can also occur with hard coughing, such as during a bad cold.
Symptoms of intercostal muscle strains include:
5.
When the acid reaches your esophagus, it can cause a burning sensation that makes you cough.
Common symptoms of GERD include:
6.
Pneumonia
Pneumoniais a lung infection triggered by viruses, bacteria, or other substances that drop your lungs.
The condition is often mild but can progress and lead toacute respiratory distress.
Symptoms of pneumonia may include:
7.
Pleurisy can also occur during heart and lung conditions like heart attack and pneumonia.
Symptoms of pleurisy include:
8.
Symptoms of COPD include:
9.
Pericarditis, Pericardial Effusion, and Cardiac Tamponade
Pericarditisis inflammation of the thin sac surrounding the heart called thepericardium.
Causes include infections, chest injury, heart attack, or certainimmune disorders.
Symptoms of pericarditis include:
10.
Pulmonary Embolism
Pulmonary embolismoccurs when a blood clot in a vein breaks off and travels to your lungs.
Symptoms of a pulmonary embolism include:
11.
Pneumothorax
Pneumothoraxis a collapsed lung.
This buildup of air places undue pressure on your lungs, preventing them from fully expanding while you breathe.
Symptoms of a pneumothorax are immediate and include:
12.
Hemothorax
Hemothoraxis a collection of blood in the space between your chest wall and lung.
Symptoms of a hemothorax include:
13.
Esophageal Perforation
Esophageal perforationis a tear in your esophagus, most often due to medical procedures like anupper endoscopy.
Severe vomiting, ingesting caustic substances, oresophageal cancercan also cause tears.
Esophageal perforation is considered a medical emergency.
Symptoms of esophageal perforation include:
14.
This can occur whenplaqueon the walls of an artery breaks off and blocks a blood vessel in the heart.
A heart attack occurs suddenly and intensely, causing symptoms like:
15.
Symptoms of acute aortic dissection:
16.
If in doubt about the cause, contact your healthcare provider or seek urgent care.
Others may be treatable on anoutpatientbasis.
Relatively manageable conditions include colds and flu, intercostal muscle strain, acute bronchitis, and GERD.
Other conditions like COPD and heart failure may require ongoing care from a specialist.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chest cold (acute bronchitis).
American Lung Association.What is a cold?
World Health Organization.COVID-19: symptoms.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Definition and facts for GERD.
American Lung Association.Pneumonia symptoms and diagnosis.
Reamy BV, Williams PM, Odom MR.Pleuritic chest pain: sorting through the differential diagnosis.Am Fam Physician.
2017;96(5):306-312.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.COPD.
MedlinePlus.Collapsed lung (pneumothrax).
Penn Medicine.Collapsed lung (pneumothrax).
St. Luke’s Hospital.Hemothorax.
UT Southwestern Medical Center.Esophageal perforation.
American Heart Association.What is a heart attack?
American Heart Association.What are the warning signs of a heart attack?
Wilson N. Jones.What are the stages of congestive heart failure?
When to go to the emergency room for CHF.
Harvard Medical School.Chest pain: a heart attack or something else?
American Academy of Family Physicians.When a “chest cold” is something more.
Fukui T.Management of acute aortic dissection and thoracic aortic rupture.Journal of Intensive Care.
2018;6(1):15.
Penn Medicine.What is cardiac tamponade?
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart attack treatment.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart failure treatment.
St. Luke’s Hospital.Pulmonary embolus.
American Lung Association.Symptoms, diagnosis, and treating pneumothorax.
St. Luke’s Hospital.Esophageal perforation.
