Expert: Dr. Paul Newhart - 11/10/2007

Question
Dear Dr. Paul Newhart,
I am a 17 year old high school senior. I workout everyday and was recently working out my chest a lot. I decided to wrestle with my friends one day and right after I finished wrestling, the center of my chest hurt really bad, right in between the pectorals. So I went to the hospital because I could barely stand the pain it took to just inhale. When I got to the hospital the took X-rays of my chest and came up with nothing except that it could possibly be a chest sprain. I knew that was not possible because when I felt my muscles, they felt no pain or irritation and there was no trauma to them or inflammation. So they sent me home with a mild prescription pain reliever, which didn't even take the edge off. I went to my regular doctor and she said that it was maybe a hairline fracture in my sternum that they could not see on the X-ray. She gave my Vicodin and an anti-inflammatory. I have been out of school for 5 days, and the pain has just recently gotten to a tolerable rate. anyway I guess my real question in all this is, 1) Do I really have a hairline fracture, 2) When can I start to lift again without causing a more serious or permanent injury?
Thanks, Anthony

Answer
The way to check for a fracture is to re-xray.  Fractures may not show on an xray for about 10 days.  Another possibility is a bone scan to test for it.  But, at 16, a bone scan may not be appropriate.  It is very likely that you sprained the rib connections at the sternum.  With therapies, these can heal quite well.  Once treatment is started, you want to work back into working out, light at first, and work your way back to where you were.