Definition
Pain caused by breathing is a common and very disturbing symptom with many possible causes. Since inhalation is actively done by muscle work, while exhalation is mainly done by relaxing the respiratory muscles, breathing pain occurs more frequently when inhaling. The pain is often aggravated by forced inhalation, coughing, sneezing or laughing.
In most cases, however, there is no cause for concern. This might also be of interest to you: Pain when breathing The most common cause is an infection. But serious illnesses can also be the cause. The pain is often accompanied by other symptoms, especially frightening is accompanying shortness of breath. For this reason, a doctor should be consulted, especially in the case of severe or long-lasting complaints.
Causes of inhalation pain
The cause of pain when inhaling does not necessarily have to be a disease of the lungs, but can also just be the accompanying symptom of another disease. Breath-related pain often occurs in infectious diseases such as scarlet fever, rubella and flu. However, a lung disease such as pneumonia or chronic bronchitis (inflammation of the bronchi) can also be the cause of the pain.
But also complaints of the ribs, such as contusions of the ribs, broken ribs or inflammation of the rib cartilage lead to pain while breathing. Another very common cause of pain while breathing is pleuritis. This is an inflammation of the pleura.
Other more rare causes of breath-related chest pain are pneumothorax (collapse of a lung wing), pulmonary embolism (occlusion of a pulmonary artery), pleural effusion (accumulation of fluid between the lung and the skin surrounding the lung) or pulmonary hypertension (excessive blood pressure in the pulmonary vessels). Pain can also be caused by injury to the nerves between the ribs, but this is continuous and can be aggravated by respiratory movements. Finally, panic attacks can also lead to breathing pain.
Small muscle strands, the so-called intercostal muscles, run between the individual ribs. This is particularly important for deep breathing, while the diaphragm does most of the work of breathing at rest. An incorrect sitting or lying position, jerky movements or unusual sporting activities can lead to tension or sore muscles.
The pain is perceived as stabbing and is not accompanied by other symptoms. The pain is relieved by warmth, massages and light movement. As a prophylactic measure, one should ensure sufficient movement.
The growing baby needs more and more space. Especially if the abdomen has reached its peak during pregnancy, pain may occur when breathing in due to lack of space. The diaphragm must then fight against increased abdominal pressure when breathing.
Often the pain depends on the position. This breath-related pain does not occur until the end of the pregnancy. In principle, this is nothing bad and, according to current experience, does not have a negative effect on the baby.
In addition, during pregnancy the ability to work under stress decreases, which is why the baby has to breathe more intensively even under stress. Other potential causes can also be clarified during a visit to the gynecologist. Breathing pain after exercise can be an indication of asthma or a pollen allergy.
Asthmatics tend to have difficulty breathing even at the beginning of physical activity. Nevertheless, endurance sports are suitable for them, as training increases the depth of breathing. But even after intensive physical exertion a healthy person struggles for air.
At the beginning of a heavy physical exertion, the body enters into a so-called oxygen debt, which must then be re-injected through deep breathing. In winter, the respiratory tract is also irritated by cold air. If there is pain in winter due to this, the sport should be interrupted.
This is because the risk of respiratory tract infections is increased. Harmless side stinging is widespread, but it disappears very quickly after the end of exercise. Even though it is not exactly clear what side stings are, there are no known late effects.
In the case of an allergy, the immune system overreacts to an actually harmless substance. Possible triggers are food, pollen and medication.During this overreaction numerous inflammatory mediators are released. These lead to a swelling of the mucous membrane in the bronchi and to a contraction of the bronchi.
Since this makes it necessary to inhale against a higher resistance, breathing becomes much more difficult and shortness of breath occurs. This is known as allergic bronchial asthma. Therapy involves the administration of adrenaline, oxygen and medication to dilate the bronchial tubes. Other symptoms can include rashes, itching and water retention in the tissues.
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