Friday, May 18, 2007

Yay pleurisy

Saw DR today. My lungs sound good, which is a relief. He said that the pain in my chest was most likely pleurisy.

Fortunately, pleurisy is a more or less benign if painful inflammation of the membranes of the lungs. The symptoms are:
  • Fever
  • Cough
  • Chills
  • Shortness of breath
  • Weight loss
  • Poor appetite
  • Sharp chest pain with breathing. Pain can limit the movement on the side of the chest with pleurisy.
  • The pain can also be in the back, up into the neck, or down into the abdomen.
  • Rapid shallow breaths
  • Inability to take a deep breath
  • Itching in sites on the back (near the site of the lungs, but no visible rashes)
Except for the fever and weight loss part, I've pretty much got all the other symptoms. Its part of all this random inflamation. I was worried that it might be a pneumonia relapse, so I'm quite relieved.

9 comments:

your friend the nurse said...

Random Inflammation- isn't that the name of an accapella group in Middlebury? If it isn't, it should be.

Ceredwyn said...

No, its the opening band for the fictitious punk group "Womb Fungus"

Unknown said...

It can be both - a punk accapella group based in Middlebury that tours with Womb Fungus. "Pleurisy" is their #1 single.

Amanda said...

And both bands can meet up with the Denver all grrl punk bank, Black Death Squirrels for an indie music fest.

Anonymous said...

Ah, I was wondering if the loss of appetite was depression kicking in.

Pleurisy? For some reason, I now expect reports of dropsy and the quartan fever.

Here, amuse yourself with Archaic Medical Terms

your friend the nurse said...

Where can I buy tickets? I have a VW microbus in day glo green if anyone wants to tag along.

Bryan Alexander said...

Pleurisy. (shaking head)

Don't let Steve get away with his antiquarianisms. Ceredwyn, can you make sure his diaphragm doesn't explode?

Ceredwyn said...

"Ah, I was wondering if the loss of appetite was depression kicking in."

Oh don't I wish. Meaning that if lack of appetite was a sx of my depression, I'd be a hell of a lot thinner.
My depression is usually accompanied by a marked increase in appetite.

I lost a bunch of weight over the pnuemonia, gained it all back and then some and now can't eat again. This is playing merry hell with my metabolism.

BTW, thanks for the archaic medical terms. I love "Floating Kidney"!

Anonymous said...

I don't think my diaphragm will not explode - doctor is arranging for something called a "sniff test." eMedicine unhelpfully tells me: "paradoxic motion of a hemidiaphragm when a patient sniffs vigorously shows phrenic nerve paralysis or paresis of the hemidiaphragm."

But hey, I get periodontal work on Friday. Whee!