“Can you pop your chest?”
I am a 33 year old male. I wonder if I can pop my chest?
9 Answers
Anywhere there is a joint, it may be adjusted. Generally, the chest area joints are the sternoclavicular joints at the top of your sternum and the rib joints. Rarely, the typhoid bone is not fused at the bottom of the sternum and it may be possible to adjust this as well.
If you are trying to adjust yourself, then it isn’t recommended. If you mean that you think you injured your chest when it popped audibly, then a chiropractor can successfully treat it.
"Popping" your chest is not a good idea since you must be feeling some sort of restriction, compression, lack of motion, difficulty in breathing, etc. Thus you are only guessing at the true cause. Remember, your chest includes your sternum, ribs, and muscles and is designed to support and protect the heart, lungs, and other crucial organs. It is best to visit your local chiropractor for an examination, evaluation, and a possible adjustment that is necessary and safe for you; otherwise, you may be given some advice for personal care or a referral to another proper healthcare professional.
Some people can. It's not necessarily good to do. Don't use too much force if you are doing it, patients have told me they have on-going pain 'popping' their own necks.
Yes, you can luxate your ribs, clavicles, and sternum. There are intercostal muscles that can pull them out of place or trauma. You will need to have a chiropractor palpate and test to make sure they are adjusted back in the proper line of correction.
Thank you for your question.
Dr. Shanti
Thank you for your question.
Dr. Shanti
The joint of the chest begins where ribs meet the back bones (vertebrae) and these are called costo-vertebral joints. In the front there are joints between the chest bone (sternum) and the ribs. These are call sterno-costal joints. If the rib cage is misaligned, these joints can be adjusted by a Chiropractor. Generally, this is performed from the back as the front joints can be quite tender and are only adjusted if necessary. Please do not try this yourself as you may cause damage to the ribs, muscles, and cartilage.
The ribs as they meet the sternum can “pop,” but it is not generally something you want to do repeatedly. Those joints are meant to be extremely stable. Repeated “popping” could create an is at unity there. If there is a misalignment, it can be realigned by a doctor, but I would avoid self manipulation here.
The sound you hear is the joints in between the ribs and the sternum moving.
Yes, there are joints where your ribs meet your sternum. Sometimes you will hear and feel them move during certain movements. They can also be manipulated by trained professionals.
