broken rib?

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

About a month ago, I bounced off some rocks, and lightly ( ) bruised a kidney and ended up with some bruising/contusions on my back....nothing toooo serious.

However, since then whenever I take a deep breath, there's a little bit of discomfort (not so much pain) in my rib cage. The discomfort varies in location depending how I happen to be sitting or twisting. Back when the incident first happened, the pain was definitely more pronounced...but eventually subsided. Anyway, I wrote it off at the time as nothing more than bruised ribs.

And of course, I was a bit irresponsible and didn't get x-rays as I was swamped with work that week and then took off for a week to Jamaica...and by the time I got back the pain when taking deep breaths subsided a ton. (but there was still discomfort as there is a bit now).

ANYHOO -- I noticed yesterday that my lowest rib on my left side is....i dunno...off a bit Actually it seems to be sticking out way more that the other rib on the other side. It doesn't hurt to touch or anything....but there's still just general weirdness when a deep breath is maxed out.

So yeah, now that I see that my skeleton / rib cage is umm,...off-center or something I'll get it checked out, but was curious to see if anyone here as ever broken a rib and what it was like, how it healed, blah blah blah.

Christ...I wonder if I've been hucking all this shit with a recently healed broken rib this whole time.

Thank you internet doctors...I hope some of you respondees slept in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[bio-smear]

Tyrone-

I caught an edge on a park landing a few years ago and went down with my fist balled up in my ribcage. It knocked the wind out of me really bad, worse than I've ever experienced. After about 10 minutes of recovery I skied down and called it a day. The pain got worse and worse as the hours went on, and sleeping that night was excrutiating. It was very acute in one of my mid-level ribs. Changing position, breathing, and god forbid-- sneezing were enough to reduce me to wimpering like a toddler.
I never went to the doctor for x-rays either. From everything I've ever heard, all they do is confirm that you do or don't have a broken rib. If you can feel them all, and no vital organs have been pierce by a severe break, you pretty much tough it out for about 2 months.

I've heard from friends who suffered bruised ribs, that that injury can be more painful. It's the tissue damage that hurts, and I think the connective tissue between ribs is pretty dense but delicate. I can't speak for a rib that protrudes farther than it did before. It might just be perceived.

That said, I didn't sleep in a Holiday Inn Express last night nor do I have any medical expertise. In fact, I'm the guy that posted a photo of a turd in the Central OR thread, so I get negative credability.

[Vinman]

Ty, I doubt that you have a broken rib. For you to ba able to take the impacts that you have beentaking over the past 2 weeks would be extremely painful with a broken rib. Even breathing would be very painful.

But it is possible that you are still bruised internally. The other possibiity is that you may have kind of subluxed the joint where the rib meets the vertebrea.

You mention the pain moving around a bit..... do you have back pain and pain at the tip of the rib?

General discomfort with sitting/sleeping in certain positions?

Did they do x-rays of your ribs after the kidney injury?

[Huckwheat]

TS, I agree with Vin, you'd know if it was broken.

How do you feel about Chiropractic? My chiro keeps me moving.....every monday he puts me back together.

The reason I ask is I have had ribs get "out of place" (kinda like what vin said). One difference is I popped mine out at the sternum, not the spinal (knees to chest with a beacon,camera,phone in between). Anyhow, when this occurred, the chiro was able to adjust me back to health.

Also, I am of the opinion that regular docs cannot do much for ribs anyhow. Broken, Bruised, whatever, they wont do anything for you (xray and pain meds....no healing).

[Vinman]

huckwheat is spot on as well. if this is what you have (costovertebral sublux) then it may need to be "adjusted" back into place.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Thanks guys --

HW -- Yeah I dig chiropractors. A Chiro helped me out a few years ago with a shoulder issue I was having. I had it in the back of my mind to go back to him about this too.

Vin -- hmm...subluxes the joint where the rib meets the vertebrae. Interesting...because there is a bit of discomfort in my back in taking a deep breath in the general area where the rib meets the vertebra. Also when taking a deep breathe, there's mild pain/discomfort on the other side of my rib cage...the side opposite of the rib I think is "sticking out" a bit.

And as far as pain sitting/sleeping...eh, not so much anymore. For sure there was initially after the fall..perhaps for 2-3 weeks...but not really anymore.

X-rays -- nope they didn't take any. (which surprised the hell out of me even though I was asking for them). But the doc on staff checked me out (listented to my breathing, felt all around my ribs and back, and didn't think they were needed....)

[Vinman]

its tough to say 100% from here, but I'd be willing to be that you did sublux a rib or two bouncing off those rock.

Let me know what you find out.

[Huckwheat]

That describes the chiro stuff perfectly. You get out of alignment....and it hurts. Then you muscles get used to the misalignment and settle down.

So, you go to chiro and they adjust you.....then they want you to come back within the week.....this is because your muscles are now used to be out of wack and want to pull it back there. It take a few sessions to get them used the "correct" position again. Eventually, you just feel when it goes bad, and you get it put back quickly....never letting muscles get used to bad position.

Ahh, all this chiro talk....I think I am going to go there right now....it sounds good.

[comish]

Ya, if you broke it you would eventually know it. I broke a couple when I crashed and landed on my toepiece. How that happened, don't know. But basically didn't do anything about it. A week later, things hurt, but were better so I went skiing in JH. By the 3rd morning I couldn't get out of bed or do anything without pretty major pain. Went to the Doc and sure enough had broken a couple ribs. It fricken really hurts so you will know something is wrong.

[cold_smoke]

And of course, I was a bit irresponsible and didn't get x-rays as I was swamped with work that week and then took off for a week to Jamaica...and by the time I got back the pain when taking deep breaths subsided a ton. (but there was still discomfort as there is a bit now).

Revert back to the Jamaican prescription....3-5times/day should do it.

[Huckwheat]

Revert back to the Jamaican prescription....3-5times/day should do it.

Green-buprofen

--Sorry....dumb old Boulder joke.....I was reverting 10 years.

[Superstar Punani]

Yup. if you broke it, you'd know it for sure.

I mangled myself in Pali early last season and knew imemediately that it was toast. Think of a sledgehammer hitting your side.

Healing takes about 6 weeks on it's own. I was skiing after two days because pain don't hurt (Seriously- even the KW clinic doc said you can ski as long as you can handle the pain).