Heartburn And Pain

Q: I have been fighting heartburn for years now. I have chest pain on the left side just to the right of my left nipple. Also have back pain in the same area, left side. This is pretty consistent and then entire chest and back hurt durring a heartburn attack. I have had an upper endoscopy (I think it was) and they didn't find anything wrong. Here is the wierd thing. I always notice that the day after having a heartburn attach, my joints hurt. Usually my elbows and knees are the worst, but I also have tenderness at the surface of my chest right in the middle. Is joint pain common with heartburn or does this point to some other potential problem or cause??? I have told my doctor but he always looks at me like I'm crazy. can anyone in the group help me please?

A:I suspect that these are two unrelated situations. Chest, shoulder, neck and arm pain in association with acid reflux is not uncommon but is related to referred diaphragmatic pain, not any direct effect on the joints or muscles. The OP is addressing joint pains in the lower extremities that he perceives occur in relationship to a reflux

episode. I can think of no reason why the two should be related, except for the possibility that such joint pains might be related to medications he takes to address the "heartburn". As an example, I think of how just eating a certain something will increase my heartburn as well as increase the pain in my big toe (probably gout). Although I do not have these exact symptoms, I am writing because I think a lot of doctors do not know how to "connect the dots" even if they were so inclined. I believe that many people react to different intakes and doctors only fixate on the literature that concerns the masses. I don't know how the different systems in our body could be UN-related