“Pain after falling?”
Yesterday, I tripped and fell, falling on my left side while I was carrying wood into the house. I feel pain when bending over, and very little when I sit still around my left rib cage. I live in Italy and at the moment seeing a doctor is the next best thing to a nightmare. I took some painkillers last night, and one more later this morning. Do I keep the area warm? There is no sign of external bruising so far. I do find it hard bending over to feed my cat or make the bed. I wonder whether I could have cracked or bruised a rib. It if was broken I would have much more pain I think. The pain is only there when as I say I try to bend over or stand up from a low sofa. Any advice on how to deal with it? I am rubbing arnica cream into the area.
Female | 76 years old
Complaint duration: one
Medications: None
Conditions: None
1 Answer
You might have a bruised or fractured rib. But, as there is no specific treatment for rib injuries other than pain control (unless a broken rib punctures a lung, which is not common and frequently causes shortness of breath), I suggest taking whatever pain medicine seems to help and avoid any activity or position that increases the pain. You can try heat or ice packs (or alternate them) if it seems to help as needed. A rib fracture can take a couple of months to heal, so I would expect you to continue having some pain for days to weeks. As stated, if you get any shortness of breath or weakness, go to the ER or call your doctor.
