Is it normal for your sternum to pop

Physical activity will be restricted with a sternum fracture, and your doctor may prescribe anti-inflammatory and pain medications. Although exercise is beneficial, it can result in sternum pain. This is because some people overexert themselves, which results in pulled muscles or even damage to the joints.

It is always important that you follow proper form when exercising and know your limit. You should always increase exercise gradually as a means of reducing your injury risk. Furthermore, if sternum pain is specific to only the times when you run, there could be numerous causes as well, including gastrointestinal disorders, like acid reflux and inflammation. If you continue to experience sternum pain while exercising or running, speak to your doctor to diagnose the underlying cause and get a proper treatment.

What type of treatment you require depends on the underlying cause of sternum pain. Here are some treatment methods based on common causes for sternum pain. Digestive issues : If pain is caused by digestive issues, you may require medication to treat your heartburn.

Speak to your doctor about any chronic heartburn problems you may be experiencing. Anxiety : Become aware of your triggers and avoid them as much as possible. Practice calming techniques and reduce stress by slowing down your breathing. Inflammation and costochondritis : Anti-inflammatory medication and icing the chest can help reduce swelling. For costochondritis, applying a warm compress may relieve pain.

However, anyone who wonders about the cause may wish to see a doctor. This is especially important when any other symptoms, such as pain or swelling, accompany the sound. These may indicate an injury or another health issue in the area. Symptoms that can accompany a popping sound in the sternum can resemble those of a heart attack. Anyone who experiences indications of a heart attack or other troubling chest symptoms should seek immediate medical attention.

Symptoms may include:. These issues can indicate angina or a heart attack, and they require immediate medical attention. The experience of a heart attack can vary by sex — learn about heart attack symptoms in females here. However, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute note that any chest pain is a sign to see a doctor and that anyone experiencing symptoms of a heart attack should seek emergency medical attention, even if they are uncertain of the cause.

Sternum popping can be a discomforting symptom. However, the sound alone is typically not a cause for concern. If a person experiences any additional symptoms, such as pain, inflammation, or stiffness, they should see a doctor.

When minor injuries are responsible for these symptoms, simple home remedies, such as NSAIDs and rest, may be enough treatment. Costochondritis is a condition where the cartilage in the breastbone becomes inflamed, causing severe chest pain.

The condition is also referred to as…. Sternum pain can result from a variety of causes. These range from medical conditions, such as acid reflux or costochondritis, to traumatic events….

A look at the xiphoid process, a tiny bone structure within the sternum. Included are details on the symptoms in this area and how to treat the…. Fibromyalgia causes widespread pain and tenderness. While symptoms differ, many people report intense pain in the chest and ribcage. Right-sided chest pain can be caused by many different conditions, illnesses, and injuries.

We look at 17 causes and when to see a doctor. Sternum popping: Causes and what to do. Medically reviewed by Timothy Gossett, M. Causes Treatments Prevention When to see a doctor Summary The sternum, or breastbone, is the flat bone in the middle of the chest, where the ribs meet. Share on Pinterest Everyday activities may cause a cracking or popping sound in the sternum.

When to see a doctor. Exposure to air pollutants may amplify risk for depression in healthy individuals. Costs associated with obesity may account for 3.

Some people have genetically tight joints that they are not able to pop their joints. On the other hand, some people are so genetically loose that they can just bend backward and stretch their chest and they can already hear their sternum popping. Again, this should not be a cause of alarm for you if you are one of those who can pop their chest. If you go to a doctor to have your chest checked, your doctor will probably just send you home with a clean bill of health.

As long as no pain and bruising is involved and you did not recently hurt your chest, there is really nothing to be worried about. As you move, your joints move with you. Other structures within your joints move as well, such as your tendons and ligaments.

The tendons are what bind your muscles to your bones. Tendons are also what connect your muscles to other parts of your body, such as your eyeball.

It is a fibrous connective tissue that helps your bones and other parts of your body move. Ligaments are what bind your bones to another bone. It is a fibrous connective tissue between your bones that holds your bones together for stability. While there is no solid evidence that the tendons and ligaments make the popping sound, some researchers believe that the popping sound comes from these tendons and ligaments as they snap back into place. So when you move and your tendons and ligaments move out of place, they produce a popping sound as they move back into their original place.

Rough and Uneven Surfaces For individuals suffering from arthritis, the cracking or popping sound is produced by the rough and uneven surfaces of their bones. Normally, the bones are held together by cartilages that prevent the bones from scratching each other. However, in the case of osteoarthritis, the structures within the joint wear down which causes stiffness and pain.

While osteoarthritis may affect any joint in your body, it commonly affects the knees, hands, hip, and spine. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease. A degenerative disease means that the condition may worsen over time. For osteoarthritis, the cartilage is what is damaged first. The cartilage is what protects the cone surface in your joints which makes your bones move smoothly without scratching each other.

However, as the cartilage wears down, it leaves the bone surface bare and makes it very difficult and excruciatingly painful to move. Eventually, the damage in the cartilage can cause stress to the other structures of the joints such as the tendons and ligaments.

Osteoarthritis is more prevalent to adults of over 50 years old. It can affect individuals differently. And in this case, proper medical care and management is required to have a better quality of life. When your bones slip out of place, you may hear a pop as you move it. This is because the movement may cause your bones to scratch other surfaces near it. Typically, this causes pain and immobility.

In some cases, the bone may slip back into place by itself, but a treatment may still be necessary to relieve the pain and to return the loss of function on the affected part. Partial dislocations are usually caused by a fall or a blow in the affected area.

It may be very painful to move the part affected by the fall or blow,and it may cause some swelling. This usually happens after you engage in high impact sports, like soccer or basketball. Dislocations can also happen even without direct contact. Putting too much stress on one part of the body may cause dislocation without you knowing it.

A common example will be that of a baseball player as he tries to swing a bat. As the player's right foot is rooted to the ground, his upper body rotates as he takes a swing. As this happens, he can dislocate his right kneecap as it lags behind during the swing. Partial dislocations can also happen to people who have genetically loose ligaments.

This makes their joints more flexible and they are more prone to dislocations. In most cases, partial dislocations need immediate medical attention. There is no need to risk putting your bone back in place by yourself. Other structures in your joints may get affected when putting the dislocated bone back in place and you may not be able to do it properly.

You will need to seek professional help to do the job. Now that we have discussed some of the possible reasons why your joints pop, it is now time to discuss what causes the popping or the cracking sound from your sternum. This will help you understand and gauge whether or not proper medical attention is needed.

Trauma or Physical Injuries Bruising of the sternum caused by light injuries is most common as you engage in some sports. Most of the bruising may heal quickly, but they may also produce the popping sound in your sternum.

Also, other severe traumas can cause sternum popping. Slamming your chest hard on another surface, like during a high speed collision and you slam your chest to the steering wheel, is an example of severe trauma. You may need to have a chest x-ray to see if there are dislocations or breaking of the bone in your chest area.

The popping sound may indicate these and you may need to seek medical attention to correct them. Strenuous Activities Putting too much strain on your chest can cause popping. During exercise, strain can be put on the chest as you lift weight, perform dips, and even something as simple as pushups. These activities put a lot of strain in your chest that as you do them, you may hear your sternum popping.

The pressure from doing these exercises could cause a sprain in your tendons and ligaments along your sternum. The popping of the sternum could be a result of subluxation of your joint. You may need a chiropractor to realign the dislocated joint and relieve stress from your sternum.

Muscle Spasm Muscle spasm can cause sternum popping especially when the spasm is strong enough to cause partial dislocation to the ribs. To prevent muscle spasm in the chest area, you will need to identify the activity that is causing the spasm.

You will have to stop doing whatever is triggering the spasm so it will not get worse. To prevent the spasm from getting worse, you can try to massage it. Lightly stretching your chest can also help. If you are experiencing soreness, you can use a heating pad to assist in loosening up your tight muscles. You will need to apply heat for 15 to 20 minutes and do it several times a day.

You may need to use a cloth to protect your chest from being burned from the heating pad. Once you experience improvement and the pain has started to decrease, you can use an ice pack after performing the activity that has set off your spasms before. Apply the ice pack 10 to 15 minutes and do it several times a day. You may need to cover your skin with a cloth to prevent frostbite.

Muscle spasm can also be caused by dehydration and loss of minerals. As your body's calcium and potassium decrease, chest spasms may develop. Drinking water can ease your chest spasms. However, you may need to take in sports drinks or salt tablets to replace the minerals that have been lost, and to bring your body's electrolytes in balance. Dislocation Dislocation is when the ends of the bones slip out of position where they articulate at a joint.

Dislocation may either be partial or complete. You will hear a popping sound as the bone slides back into its original position. Dislocation is usually caused by trauma, after a fall or a blow, or putting too much strain on a specific part of the body. High impact sports, accidents, and strenuous exercises may cause dislocation.

It may be hard to differentiate a broken bone from a dislocated joint. So it is important to assess the situation first before applying first aid treatment. Treating a broken bone as you would treat a dislocated joint may cause a lot of danger for the patient. You may need help from a doctor if you are unsure of the diagnosis. Most dislocations can be cared for in an emergency room or a clinic. The doctor may need to put you to sleep and numb the affected area before treating it.

Most dislocations do not pose permanent injury if they are treated early. Costochondritis is the inflammation of the rib's costal cartilage. This condition usually affects the cartilage along the upper ribs attached to the sternum. This area is known as the costosternal joint. Women and adults over 40 years of age are at higher risk of being diagnosed with costochondritis. There is also increased risk of costochondritis to people who engage in high impact activities, do manual labor, and people with allergies and are constantly exposed to whatever causes their allergies.

In most cases, costochondritis is relatively harmless and it usually goes away without treatment. However, the sternum may be tender to touch and you may experience pain. But if you are experiencing shooting pains and difficulty in breathing, you will need to go to the doctor right away. Tietze Syndrome Tietze syndrome, also known as chondropathia tuberosa or costochondral junction syndrome, is similar to costochondritis in that the cartilage of the ribs is inflamed.

However, with Tietze syndrome, the cartilage is typically characterized by the swelling of the joints. It is a benign inflammation caused by repeated minor physical strain or trauma, like repeated vomiting and persistent coughing. Tietze syndrome may go away without any medical treatment. You may experience pain that will subside after several weeks or months. However, the swelling may come back from time to time.

Tietze syndrome mostly affects young adults, usually before 40 years of age. It is also reported to affect some infants, children, and older people, although this rarely happens. The male and the female population are affected equally by this condition.

Arthritis Arthritis is a disease characterized by joint degeneration. It also causes rough and uneven bone surfaces than can cause the cracking or the popping sound when the bones are rubbed against one another.

Arthritis can be excruciatingly painful, especially at a stage of severe degeneration. The most common types of arthritis that affect the chest area are rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is the condition in which the immune system inflames the joint structures.

Osteoarthritis is the degeneration of the structures of the joints which sometimes affects the end of the bones in the process. The joints between the ribs and the sternum can be affected by osteoarthritis.

With arthritis, the popping of the sternum does not always come from the joint structures. Sometimes, the muscle along the chest walls is what causes the popping. The reason why you may feel a strain in your joints is because the spasm from the muscle of your chest walls limits the movement in the joints between your sternum and your ribs. In some cases, an injury in the chest wall may cause pain and reduced movement, but this should be isolated as a chest wall problem, especially if the joints between the sternum and the ribs are not involved.

Sternal Instability Sternal instability, also known as sternal nonunion, is a medical term that refers to the condition when the sternum does not heal after a surgery or after a traumatic injury.

This condition is rare but it is associated with the increased rate of morbidity. Patients seek medical attention after experiencing pain and sternum popping. Sternal instability can be confirmed using radiographic imaging, and it can be treated by reconstructive surgery. Calcification of the Costal Cartilage Calcification of the costal cartilage occurs not until the patient is 30 years of age.

Calcium builds up in the costal cartilage which hardens and disrupts the cartilage's normal processes.

However, it is important to note that calcification is not caused by a diet rich in calcium. Calcification can be caused by infection, autoimmune disorders, or injury. When treating costal cartilage calcification, your doctor will need to identify the underlying cause of the calcification and any complications that may arise. Calcium deposits in the tendons and the joints do not always pose painful symptoms.

But over time, they may cause discomfort and have an effect on your body's range of motion. A patient may be prescribed with anti-inflammatory medicines. Applying ice packs may also help relieve the discomfort.