Acute chest pain after bench press exercise in a healthy young adult

Abstract

Bench press exercise, which involves repetitive lifting of weights to full arm extension while lying supine on a narrow bench, has been associated with complications ranging in acuity from simple pectoral muscle strain, to aortic and coronary artery dissection. A 39-year-old man, physically fit and previously asymptomatic, presented with acute chest pain following bench press exercise. Diagnostic evaluation led to the discovery of critical multivessel coronary occlusive disease, and subsequently, highly elevated levels of lipoprotein (a). Judicious use of ancillary testing may identify the presence of “high-risk” conditions in a seemingly “low-risk” patient. Emergency department evaluation of the young adult with acute chest pain must take into consideration an extended spectrum of potential etiologies, so as to best guide appropriate management.

How chest press-based exercises can alleviate the burden of cardiovascular diseases

“…Chest press elicits a large cardiovascular response [43] since exercises with upper limbs tend to carry greater cardiovascular overload than those performed with lower limbs [44]: probably, this is due to the smaller size of the vascular network present in the upper than lower limbs, which offers greater resistance to blood flow, resulting in higher myocardial demand and thereby considerably increased cardiovascular overload [45]. This is important as chest press has been associated with complications ranging in acuity from pectoral muscle strains to aortic and coronary artery dissection [46].…”