There are many benign and serious conditions that can cause chest pain. Non-cardiac causes of chest pains, like pulled rib muscles or chest wall pains, are fairly common but even the slightest symptoms can indicate more life-threatening conditions like pulmonary embolism or pneumonia. When the pain is localized in certain areas of the chest, it is easier to perform a self-diagnosis and take actions to prevent further damage before consulting a doctor. Chest pain on the left side usually indicates angina pectoris or a non-cardiac condition called fibromyalgia. Chest pain on the right side, however, is rarely due to a cardiovascular condition and instead may be due to gallbladder problems and liver inflammation.
Causes of Right Side Chest Pain
Gallstones is a gallbladder condition where bile and cholesterol crystallizes, resulting in the inflammation of the gallbladder or cholecystitis. This is usually followed by sharp abdominal pains that reaches up to the chest during its acute stage. The pain is often steady, severe, and indicates changes in a electrocardiogram. Gallstones may also trigger chest pains in someone who is already suffering from coronary heart disease, and can produce recurring chest pain.
Right side chest pain can also be indicative of liver inflammation or hepatitis. This is usually caused by diseases that attack the liver and is divided into two types, depending on the length of the disease: acute hepatitis (lasts less than six months) and chronic hepatitis (lasts longer than six months). Hepatitis is usually caused by bacterial infections, toxins (alcohol and fungal toxins), metabolic disorders, and viruses.
For an accurate diagnosis on the condition behind your chest pain, consult your doctor and have him or her give you an electrocardiogram and chest radiograph. Gallstones are also easily detected by ultrasound, while a hepatitis diagnosis can be confirmed by a blood test and sometimes by a tissue sample from the liver.