Treating Bruised Ribs

In the human body rib cage serves to insulate the soft internal organs like lungs, heart liver, kidneys and spleen from injury. Being a bony tissue the ribs possess numerous nerve endings so bruised ribs are associated with significant pain. Bruised rib occurs as a result of a fall on the side of the chest, being struck by a blunt object or violent coughs. It is a common condition in players involved in a contact sport like football without proper protective gear. A direct blow to the chest or the side of the chest will bruise ribs or bruise rib cartilage both of which can be extremely painful and requires attention.

Common bruised rib symptoms include a constant pain and tenderness over the injured place. The symptoms for bruised and cracked ribs are very similar. So unless an X-ray is done it is not possible to assess the extent of rib damage or the damage to the internal organs. A patient with a bruised rib cage often has a sensation of an abnormal bone movement. There is tenderness over the bruised muscle under rib cage and the pain increases with activities like coughing or sneezing.

The general principle of how to treat a broken rib is to keep it in place and allow time for healing. Since it is not possible to treat broken ribs by immobilizing them there is a fair amount of pain when you allow the healing process to occur naturally. Often broken or bruised ribs heal by themselves. Instances of discovering a healed break in the ribs by X-ray a considerable time later during a check-up for some other health problem is quite common. However immediate attention and considerable care needs to be given to heal bruised lung rib to prevent dangerous bleeding around the lungs.

The main steps in the treatment for bruised ribs include, rest, ice pack over the injured area till the pain subsides and anti-inflammatory or other medicines. Some doctors recommend a rib belt or a girdle to support the bruised ribs as treatment. The time taken for recovery varies with the type of injury. Bruised ribs take 3 to 4 weeks to heal while broken ribs take 6 to 8 weeks to heal.

If there is a pet in the household one needs to be exceedingly careful with bruised ribs. Dog or a cat running around can unwittingly cause serious accidents which may complicate the treatment process.