Hi Pauline I really do not know...Im lost as well and the pain is only controlled by Morphine Pain Killers....I hate all these pills but I need them to function...If anyone has ever had Pluresy then they will know it is really agony, The thing is Meds only mask the pain and eventually we get tempted to increase and that is where dependent ends and addiction starts......

I recently by chance ended up in emergency with bronchial tube blockage...No symptoms except ''No Air Movement'' so i was getting starved of oxygen.....Only Massive Prednisone via IV drip and 4 hrly nebs cleared it up...No antibiotics......Amazingly at such high Prednisone treating the blockage stopped the inflammation and whoa..so did the pain drop to a all time low..2-3 scale....

So was it the Pred and Morphine, or the high concentration of Prednisone only???? When i got home i was on an extended taper.....down down down then at 5mg...Pain is building up.....SOOO i decided maybe increase Pred. to 10mg daily routine....which i am one month on plus the Morphine.......Pain is controllable again.....so next I will weane off the Morphine this time.....ALL TRIAL N ERROR...

So it is a Catch 22....re the side effects of Pred..I take 2000 IU Vit.D3 and weekly Blood Sugar Tests at home,,,Just using the pin prick system Diabetics use every morning....then i had one Bone Density Scan last week to check my state and it was fine....So every 3 monthly tests will check for any signs of Osteo....All Plans at this stage...LOL........

After an ABG then adjust your diet to suit...Get a good dietician to do a Food Plan....I would not rely on any readings as they are only accurate as your body processes the different foods you eat.....Up to you as i am really flying without any radar myself...ha

Keep in touch as we can bounce off each other...xxxxx

I do mainly in the right bottom rib area. It feels like a cramping and takes my breathe away. This happens when I am bent over or putting my shoes on...

Exactly Pauline.....it is not the ribs....it is the Lungs that are elongated that rubs against diaphragm....In its early stages it feels like a cramp....as the disease progresses and one has a ''Gas Exchange'' issue, only PLB. , a Surgical Option or Pain Management of some sort, like i unfortunately rely on Morphine, will ease this painful condition....If you ever had Pleurisy then it is not far off it....xxxx

I may be wrong with the info I'm about to share so I'm asking anyone who's interested to use a search engine, i.e., google, and research it. Or, better still, ask a medical professional. My brother-in-law emailed some information that he thought helpful. To cut to the chase, it seems there MAY BE a way to control the build up of co2 and perhaps reduce further rib cramping. Evidently, as the lungs no longer can expel co2 from the body, the co2 causes an acidic environment for all the organs, and therefore if we eat alkaline foods to balance the pH level in our body, the co2 basically slows to a very slow crawl. Hope this makes sense - I'm not good at articulating - I went online and researched alkaline foods vs acidic, and it's amazing the choices. Because here in Thailand I cannot find pH testing strips, I'm going to go to a pool company and get some from there. Online the information is pretty exact as to how much the level of acidity should or should not be; same for the alkaline. I'm sharing this in the hope the expansion of the rib cage can slow and give us more years of comfort. As an aside, my brother in-law also mentioned non-invasive ventilation - haven't looked that up but there's a possible two item tidbit that will give our bodies some relief. Just wanted to share.

Nope Dan....not old per se....read the previous comments...it is just a part of COPD that our Pleural Area between our Lungs and Rib cage/Diaphragm have shrunk due to many things but mostly less space to accommodate elongated lungs that have lost their ability to reset themselves...As the disease progresses and if you have this issue, it will get much worse.....trust me...

Every movement specially raising our arms above our heads or loading/unloading groceries out of the car, can cause either pain or excess SOB....All originates from this common denominator.....