Costochondritis occurs in 20-30 women, with a male:female ratio of 1:9. The lesions are most often found in the 2nd-5th ribs of the chest, with the 2nd and 3rd ribs being the most common, but also in the sternal stalk, medial clavicle and anterior lower ribs. The affected costal cartilage is affected by dull or sharp pain in the chest, with pressure pain and enlargement, and the pain increases when inhaling deeply, coughing or moving the affected upper limb, and sometimes spreads to the shoulder or back. Sometimes the pain spreads to the shoulder or back, and even cannot raise the arm. However, there is no change in the local skin; the pain varies in severity and often persists, affecting the patient’s work and study. After the pain disappears, the enlarged rib cartilage may last for months or years. Sometimes the pain can flare up after exertion. There are acute and slow onset, acute onset can be sudden, feel the chest stabbing pain, throbbing pain or soreness; hidden attack is slow onset, unconsciously make the rib and rib cartilage junction is bowed, swelling, dull pain, sometimes radiated to the back of the shoulder, axilla, cervical chest, sometimes chest tightness and breath, rest or side lying pain relief, deep breathing, coughing, lying down, chest and fatigue after the pain is increased. Most women with costochondritis present with breast pain because the pain of costochondritis often radiates to the breast. Therefore, costochondritis can be easily confused with breast pain. However, it is not difficult to distinguish between them, and if the breast itself is the cause of the problem, a lump or laceration can often be felt in the breast, or the skin of the breast can be locally red. Costochondritis is often exacerbated by coughing, deep breathing, raising the arm sideways, etc., whereas breast pain is not affected by these factors. According to traditional Chinese medicine, costal chondritis is mainly caused by Qi stagnation and blood stasis, and stagnant blood turns into heat, so treatment is based on moving Qi and blood to relieve pain, clearing heat and cooling blood, and harmonizing camp. The cartilage itself is not vascularized and its blood supply comes mainly from the cartilaginous membrane. When the cartilage membrane is infected, the cartilage becomes necrotic due to the lack of blood supply, causing the infection to persist and to penetrate the skin to form sinus tracts. Infectious costal chondritis is caused by ischemic necrosis of cartilage due to infection of the costal cartilage membrane and is associated with insensitivity to antibiotics. Due to anatomical features, the 1st-4th ribs are isolated and the infection does not usually spread to the adjacent ribs, while the 5th-10th ribs are connected to each other by the adjacent cartilage and to the opposite side by the sternal process, so the infection can spread to each other and involve multiple ribs on the same side, and can spread to the opposite side through the process, extending the infection. There is pus and granulation tissue formation around the infected rib cartilage, and the surface of the ischemic and necrotic rib cartilage is not smooth and has worm-like changes, some of which are thin and rattail-like, and some of which can be completely resorbed. Infectious costal chondritis is mostly secondary, and currently it is most often caused by infection after thoracic surgery. The causative agent is mainly septic bacteria. This requires an emphasis on prevention, strict asepsis, and avoidance or minimization of damage to the costal cartilage membrane to reduce its occurrence. Clinical diagnosis 1. The only symptom is localized pain, sometimes spreading to the shoulder or back. It is more common in the 2nd and 3rd rib cartilage. The pain is aggravated by coughing and upper limb activity. 2.Examination may reveal swelling, bulging and pressure pain in the affected rib cartilage. Treatment principles 1, symptomatic treatment, taking pain medication, can be added with prednisone anti-inflammatory pain relief. 2.Anti-viral drugs. Viralin 0.1g, 3 times a day. 3.Closure with nufcaine and prednisolone when localized. 4, smoking is prone to serious complications of costochondritis A study at Sinai Hospital, Mo. found that the risk of costochondritis is directly proportional to smoking, while there is no significant correlation with gender, race, age, hypertension and diabetes. Smoking is thus an important factor in the development of serious complications of costochondritis. Chronic smoking also leads to a higher incidence of cancer. Western medical treatment Western medical treatment is symptomatic: 1. pain medication, with the addition of prednisone to relieve pain. 2. Anti-viral drugs. Viralin 0.1g, 3 times a day. 3, local when closed with nufcaine and prednisolone. Adjuvant therapy: eat more leeks, oranges, dog meat, adzuki beans and other foods, these foods have the auxiliary therapeutic effect of soothing the tendons and relieving pain. Can massage local several times a day by themselves, using physiotherapy methods with electric magnetic wave lamp, infrared class tube and other physiotherapy.