What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Pleurisy and Other Disorders of the Pleura?

Pleurisy

The main symptom of pleurisy is a sharp or stabbing pain in your chest that gets worse when you breathe in deeply or cough or sneeze.

The pain may stay in one place or it may spread to your shoulder or back. Sometimes it becomes a fairly constant dull ache.

Depending on what's causing the pleurisy, you may have other symptoms, such as:

• Shortness of breath
• A cough
• Fever and chills
• Rapid, shallow breathing
• Unexplained weight loss
• A sore throat followed by pain and swelling in your joints

Pleural Effusion

Pleural effusion often has no symptoms.

Pneumothorax

The symptoms of pneumothorax include:

• Sudden, sharp chest pain that gets worse when you breathe in deeply or cough
• Shortness of breath
• Chest tightness
• Easy fatigue (tiredness)
• A rapid heart rate
• A bluish color of the skin caused by lack of oxygen

Other symptoms of pneumothorax include flaring of the nostrils; anxiety, stress, and tension; and hypotension (low blood pressure).

Hemothorax

The symptoms of hemothorax are often similar to those of pneumothorax. They include:

• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Respiratory failure
• A rapid heart rate
• Anxiety
• Restlessness