I and several women in my family, have a health complaint that

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I and several women in my family, have a health complaint that no one seems to be able to help us with. We get severe stabbing pain in the mid back that travels to the front and many times goes up into our jaw line. The only thing that I find that helps is taking my levisin, and I noticed that while drinking is very hard to do at first when this happens and is painful, for some reason it eases it a bit (it does not stop it). It has been so painful that we have become nauseated, sweaty, dizzy to the point of having to lay down, and some have passed out. These episodes do not seem to have a cause and effect, as some have reported to have been awaken at night with this, although a few have stated that stress, although not a cause for it, seems to make it worse if they have an episode and have been experiancing stress that day. Can someone please tell me what this could be? My daughter, who is 22, is showing signs of this condition starting and I worry that it could become worse as mine has.
Thank you.

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Female , Age: 45

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asking doctors here but none seem to know what it could be or they don't agree on the cause.

Customer (name blocked for privacy)

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Hi Customer (name blocked for privacy)-

There could be a few different explanations for the symptoms you describe. My first instinct is that you have GERD, or Gastroesophageal reflux disease. Often people will experience heartburn along with the jaw pain, difficulty swallowing, nausea, etc., but this isn't always the case. You need to be examined by your doctor to see if this is the correct diagnosis. If it is, there are some medications you can try to help ease the symptoms.

Another possibility (although less likely) is that you are suffering from TMJ. People with TMJ report different degree's of pain, and a variety of symptoms. For a proper diagnosis, see your doctor and/or your dentist.

I would strongly urge your daughter to be evaluated for these two conditions as well - early detection of both can help prevent later misery.

Best regards,
Emily

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Reply to HealthGuru aka Emily's Post: actually these have been ruled out. the pain starts in the mid back, feeling like someone has stuck a knife between the shoulder blades, then travels to the front, and then up into the jaw line. there is not a burning sensation, just a lot of pain that can be, but not always is, accompanied with sweats, nausea,the feeling of rapid heart beats, light headiness(dizzy), and in some cases, fainting. It can come on any time of day or night, but if you are experiencing a stressful day, the symptoms are worse but they are not or seem not to be brought on by stress. We have been told everything from gerd, to kidney stones, to gallstones, to hernia, but no one seems to feel that the doctors take them seriously. Our mother died of a heart attack, her mother of a stroke, a sister of an anurism(?)that occured in the stomach, my birth father had similar complaints and had a stroke/heartattack combination that killed him. We know that its not from the ears, no ringing or pain there, the pain travels up into the jaw line.

Have you had any tests to see whether, in fact, GERD is not the problem? If yes, do you know the names of the tests conducted?

Have any other tests been preformed?

Thanks,
Emily

Edited by EmilyT27 on October 4 2006 at 8:48 AM

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Reply to HealthGuru aka Emily's Post: we have had upper gi's, lower gi's, cat scans with and w/out contrast, everything shows nothing remarkable, except for a possible small hernia that appeared once and is not there now, it's just that this is something that started in our 20's and 30's and is prevalent in my family es. with the women.

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I fully believe that you are suffering from either Fibromyalgia or Myofascial Pain Syndrome. These conditions can present with similar symptoms but I think you are leaning more towards Myofascial Pain Syndrome. Unfortunately there is no "cure" for either of these conditions but with intense physical therapy and pain management, your symptoms can decrease dramatically and they do in most cases. I have added some great links below for more detailed information:

Mysofacial Pain Syndrome

Fibromyalgia and Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome (FMS/MPS) from Devin Starlanyl

Muscle pain causes, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment on MedicineNet.com

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Edited by CorpsmanUp! on October 5 2006 at 8:06 PM

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Reply to CorpsmanUp's Post: my pain is not constant, it only comes and goes and it could be a week, two, or even a month or more before I feel the pain again. Please reread from the beginning.
pain starts between shoulder blades
radiates up into shoulders
may or may not radiate down arm(s)
radiates into my jaw line
I feel my esophogus spasm (at times)
drinking seems to to shock it back to normal(this is for the above symptom)
The pain can last for an hour, two hours or just a few minutes.
levisin helps
The following have also been noticed:
(not always but sometimes) dizziness, nausea,
lightheadiness, sweating, dry mouth, hard to catch our breath.
It feels like a heartattack.
This is something that is happening to others in my family, and have happened to others who later died from an anurisym(I think that's how it's spelled) that ruptured in the abdomen right were the pain starts.

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severe pain radiating into jaw line, w/no clear cause.

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