Your GP will carry out a physical examination by looking at and touching the upper chest area around your costochondral joint. They will ask you when and where your pain occurs, and look at your recent medical history.
Before diagnosing Tietze’s syndrome, some tests may need to be carried out to rule out other possible causes of your chest pain. This may include:
- an ECG (electrocardiogram), which records the rhythms and electrical activity of your heart
- a chest X-ray
- other scans, such as an ultrasound scan and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan, which produce pictures of the inside of your body
If no other condition is suspected or found, a diagnosis of Tietze’s syndrome may be given.
Many people worry that they could have a heart condition when they first feel the chest pain of Tietze’s syndrome. Therefore a diagnosis of Tietze’s syndrome can be very reassuring and more important than any treatment your GP can offer.
