Muscle spasms Swelling Muscle weakness When to see the doctor Mild strains can be treated at home. See a doctor if your symptoms worsen despite treatment โ€” especially if your pain becomes intolerable, or you experience numbness or tingling. Causes Acute strains can be caused by one event, such as using poor body mechanics to lift something heavy.

Understanding the Context

Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle, called the myocardium. The condition can reduce the heart's ability to pump blood. Myocarditis can cause chest pain, shortness of breath, and rapid or irregular heartbeats. Infection with a virus is one cause of myocarditis.

Key Insights

Sometimes myocarditis is caused by a medicine reaction or a condition that causes inflammation throughout the body. Very rarely, statins can cause life-threatening muscle damage called rhabdomyolysis (rab-doe-my-OL-ih-sis). Rhabdomyolysis can cause extreme muscle pain, liver damage, kidney failure, and death. The risk of very serious side effects is extremely low. Only a few cases of rhabdomyolysis occur per million people taking statins.

Final Thoughts

A heart attack occurs when an artery that sends blood and oxygen to the heart is blocked. Fatty, cholesterol-containing deposits build up over time, forming plaques in the heart's arteries. If a plaque ruptures, a blood clot can form. The clot can block arteries, causing a heart attack. During a heart attack, a lack of blood flow causes the tissue in the heart muscle to die. Overview Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a-my-o-TROE-fik LAT-ur-ul skluh-ROE-sis) is a nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.

Also known as ALS, the disease leads to muscle weakness and gets worse over time. ALS often begins with muscle twitching and weakness in an arm or leg, trouble swallowing, or slurred speech. Eventually ALS affects the muscles needed ... Dermatomyositis (dur-muh-toe-my-uh-SY-tis) is a condition in which swelling and irritation, called inflammation, attacks the body's tissues.