Late in the work day I started to feel a stabbing pain in my chest. The pain was not severe, but I knew something was not right. That night the pain increased. I could not sleep because every other breath was painful. The deeper the breath the more pain I felt. For a few minutes I thought I could be having a minor heart attack, but the location of the pain was at the top of my rib cage, on the right hand side, just below my chest, nowhere near my heart. Early the next morning the pain had not subsided, so I went to the hospital for treatment. The only symptom I could provide the doctor was the stabbing pain during deep breaths. He took first checked for inflamed organs then ordered chest x-rays. He found a tiny area between the two linings where fluid was built up. He decided to treat it as if it was pneumonia. I was prescribed ibuprofen, anti-biotics, and pain medicine.

I woke up one Monday morning at 04:00 feeling like I had been kicked in the ribs by a horse. For the next 24 hours I felt a sharp stabbing pain in my lower back and ribs. By Tuesday morning the pain had mostly subsided and was a dull throb. Thinking it might be a kidney stone I waited a few days for the pain to 'move on down'. But that never happened. Instead, every morning I woke up in agony which subsided after a few minutes upright and a Motrin. Then Friday morning I woke up feeling okay. I got into the shower and immediately started coughing up bloody sputum. I went to the local ER. After blood, urine, a chest x-ray, and two CT scans I was diagnosed with atypical pneumonia and pleurisy. I was prescribed azithromycin and painkillers. Coughing and pneumonia symptoms were gone within a few days but the pleurisy lingered for a week or so... and I got treatment early. Please if you experience these symptoms (sharp chest pain + chills + shortness of breath) do not delay treatment! Pleurisy is very often a sign of more serious illness. (Besides which, it hurts like the dickens!)

Reading the comments from others has very been interesting as I did not know that pleurisy often recurs. This is my 5th bout. The first was 34 years ago. Apart from the first time, I have always been in a 3rd world country and the local doctors have been prepared to accept my self-diagnosis. I take antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs and it goes away in a matter of days. I am also happy not to have been living in the US as the cost of treatment has been negligible.

I was having a little pain & discomfort while taking deep breaths, the next day I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a car! My upper back and chest ached and produced a sharp pain when taking a deep breath, coughing, sneezing, or even just moving. I also had chills. Finally decided to go to the ER, I had an EKG, X-ray, and blood work done, to rule out pneumonia or any other infection. Turns out it was a virus in my left lung...pleurisy. I had never heard of this condition before, but it is very painful!

I'm 40, perfectly fit and healthy, no chronic illnesses, no medications I take regularly. Yesterday, after getting my kids off to daycare/school, I felt back pain between my shoulder blades - dull, like I'd been punched. It got slightly worse at work, and then hurt under my breastbone. I started having trouble breathing, so my school nurse called an ambulance. Seven hours in the ER, after EKG etc to rule out heart attack, blood work and chest X-rays. I had a chest CT scan to check for a blood clot in the lung, they diagnosed pleurisy. I have never even heard of that before! I'd had a head cold about 2 weeks ago, but was feeling better, but no other symptoms. This was a scary experience!

It was last week - on Thursday I was constantly feeling tired. Then gradually I developed pain somewhere in my left rib cage - not knowing precisely from where. This grew into an excruciating pain under my shoulder blade and back. Two days later- after painful nights with fever and chills- the family doctor diagnosed pleurisy. I was given antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medicine. The day after, although I had no cold- running nose or anything - I started coughing slightly. Then came the sputum with blood stains. I had pneumonia back in end 2008. 2009 had been fairly good, although with slight cough. The harsh thing is that my mother says it leaves your lungs fragile and pleurisy is dormant- it may come back anytime.

I currently have pleurisy. It started with a sinus infection and earache and progressed to the chest and back pain with breathing. I have had it about four times in the past 10 years, so I knew what it was. Went to the doctor on Monday and she prescribed an antibiotic and an inhaler. I am taking that and using the inhaler 2x/day plus the heating pad. Hopefully everything will clear up within the next 10 days.