Hi, I am 65 yr female with Lupus and Fibro, suffering from pleurisy. I spent one night in the hospital to confirm it was not my heart, and was sent home next day with the diagnosis of the pleurisy. This was 2 weeks ago, and I am still having pains in my chest from it. How long will this pain last? I have hard time breathing, too. I am so tired all of the time, and can hardly get out of bed to do anything. My doctor gave me motrin to take for the pleurisy. I hate being tired all of the time and want to get on with my life. Please help me. Thank you, MP
Thanks for your question on Chat Doctor. I can understand your situation and problem. In my opinion you should consult pulmonologist and get done clinical examination of respiratory system and chest x-ray to rule out causes of pleurisy. Since you are not improving with treatment for 2 weeks, better to investigate causes for pleurisy. Following are the possible causes for pleurisy.1. Pneumonia2. Tuberculosis3. Pleural effusion4. Pulmonary contusions5. Pulmonary infarction (due to lupus). So get done chest x-ray to rule out above-mentioned possible causes of pleurisy and start appropriate treatment.