Back pain in the shoulder blades is reported in both older and younger people. Pain in the interscapular region does not indicate any disease, but the manifestation of a number of disorders in the work of organs located outside the zone of concentration of pain.
If the back hurts in the area of the shoulder blades, it is the result of abnormalities in the muscles, nerves, faceted joints, ligaments, internal organs, blows and injuries, and so on. they may be a likely excuse for pain.
The nature of pain
In medical practice, it is of great importance that the patient rationally describes his or her pain above the waist. Inter-shoulder pain is a symptom of many diseases or pathologies, and a precise description of the nature, type, frequency of onset and disappearance can be used to determine the cause. The correct diagnosis eliminates the burning sensation in the back, the pain in the shoulder blades, the causes are determined with the help of a doctor, and in the future the diseases are prevented.
Due to the nature of back pain syndrome:
- chronic - mild pain characteristic, disturbance for a long time, practically does not stop;
- acute - specific pain, suddenly conspicuous and transient, much stronger than chronic.
When the back hurts in the area of the shoulder blades, the painful feelings are localized in different places. This gives rise to three types of shoulder pain:
- pain under the shoulder blades (right or left);
- pain between the shoulder blades;
- pain in the shoulder blade to the right or left.
The back hurts under the shoulder blades
The causes of pain may have nothing to do with the spine. If someone has back pain under the shoulder blades, it can be concluded from a number of accompanying signs, without tests and analyzes, that they have typical common diseases.
Painful pathologies under the left shoulder blade:
- Peptic ulcer. It is characterized by regular, increasing pain that weakens or disappears after vomiting. The pain in the epigastrium is localized but penetrates the left scapula.
- Psychological problems. They cause barely noticeable or acute difficulty, congestion in the chest, tingling in the heart area, compression in the chest. There are cases where such symptoms affect the area of the neck, spreading below the left shoulder blade.
What caused the pain under the right shoulder blade
The way the symptom appears determines their causes.
The list of causes explaining pain under the right shoulder blade is extensive. Examples of the most common:
- Dull, persistently disturbing, lasting pain on the right back can be caused by the usual muscle cramps resulting from prolonged uncomfortable posture, or by internal organs: kidneys, pancreas, gallbladder. In most cases, the pain occurs unexpectedly, with a sharp turn of the head, sneezing, coughing.
- Acute or increasing acute, prickly pain localized to the right in the heart region or interstitial space may be the result of disease of the internal organs and is not related to the spine. Many body systems cause pain under the right shoulder blade by deviating from functional norms — cardiovascular, excretory, digestive, and so on.
- The pulling-cutting pain under the right shoulder blade is thought of at the onset of musculoskeletal disorders: chondrosis, osteochondrosis, spondylosis, and so on. This type of pain can be caused by neuralgia during the pinching of nerve roots. The causes of such painful feelings may be oncological tumors, not often, but such phenomena are present in medical practice.
- If the patient has pain in the back muscles under the shoulder blades, he should think about diseases of the respiratory system. Pain under the shoulder blades can be caused by muscle overload at this site or the chest spine.
- Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. It often causes unilateral aching, dull pains that are concentrated under the occipital part. Their peculiarity is that they show up in the morning, pulling the patient out of sleep. Pain syndrome is particularly strong with a sharp bend - an extension of the neck. The heat on the painful surface (hot bath) quenches the pain. Patients complain of this pathology of pain under the shoulder blades, an influx of pain into the arm or head.
Causes of pain between the shoulder blades
Intercostal neuralgia is manifested by pain in the belt. With deep breathing, a sharp turn of the body, a touch of the inflamed area between the ribs, the pain intensifies.
Diseases of the lungs are accompanied by pain between the shoulder blades, with deep breathing the pain intensifies, there is a high temperature, cough.
In case of increased pain with flat breathing, it is given more often under the right shoulder blade, diaphragmatic abscess may occur.
When the normal tilt of the head causes pain between the shoulder blades, it is accompanied by an inflammatory process in the muscles of the inter-shoulder region and damage to tendons and ligaments.
Pain between the shoulder blades sometimes occurs when swallowed, caused by diseases of the esophagus (inflammation or ulcer); inflammatory processes in the organs located between the two lungs; membrane damage.
The burning sensation between the shoulder blades causes kidney and bile colic attacks, osteochondrosis of the cervical or thoracic vertebrae, and reflux esophagitis.
Pain in the right and left sides of the shoulder blade
The reason is that he gets hit on the shoulder blade or falls on it. An embarrassing fall on the arm or elbow results in a shoulder fracture. Trauma causes severe pain syndrome, the intensity of which increases with the movement of the hands. Edema is formed.
Pterygoid shoulder blade. It occurs as a result of muscle paralysis - the result of a trapezoidal, diamond-shaped, front tooth, or a number of bruises in the forearm region, damage to the long chest nerve.
Shoulder fracture - fracture in the shoulder joint.
Treatment methods
You should determine the condition of your lungs and heart at the start of treatment. Your cardiologist and therapist will probably prescribe an ECG or ultrasound procedure. After consulting with professionals, you cannot safely consider these organs to be the cause of pain between the shoulder blades.
If pain occurs when the spine moves near the shoulder blade, the cause is usually sought in the back. The pain is sometimes so severe that it can be confused with the symptoms of panic attacks.
In the diagnosis of the spine, a standard X-ray is often not enough, the full picture is given by MRI of the chest region. Consultation with the vertebrologist is required at this stage of the diagnosis.
Treatment of the right shoulder blade can only be relieved if the causes are clear. If this pain is related to diseases of the internal organs, they should be treated. Which doctor treats you depends on that organ. The pain under the right shoulder blade will go away on its own if the treatment of the affected internal organ is successful.
If there is an association between pain in the right back and the interdulobular region with diseases of the spine, medical care will focus on the focus of the inflammation. Painkillers, chondroprotectors, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and corticosteroids are used to eliminate the inflammatory process.
Prolonged dull pain resulting from muscle cramps or neuralgia is effectively treated with analgesic warming ointments. In addition, patches are used to provide a warming and analgesic effect.
Prophylaxis
The back in the area of the shoulder blades will not hurt if you exercise a lot and lead a healthy lifestyle. The movements provide an even load on the muscles, correct weight lifting, massage treatments and various physiotherapy. Sport is the best preventive measure.
We recommend that you beware of drafts and hypothermia. And most importantly, make sure you are on a proper diet.