Upper back pain between the shoulder blades can range from mild to debilitating, affecting daily life and quality of life. Pain between shoulder blades often described as an ache, sharp pain, or burning sensation, may be caused by muscle strain, poor posture, or more serious health issues. Understanding the causes of this pain helps choose the best treatments. Recognizing symptoms and knowing when to seek treatment can improve recovery from desk work, injuries, or medical conditions.
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Can Poor Posture Cause Upper Back Pain?
Posture is crucial to upper back health. Good posture aligns the upper back and shoulder blade muscles, bones, and ligaments, reducing strain and injury. Poor posture can cause chronic shoulder blade pain and other issues.
Poor Posture Effect
- Muscle Strain: Slouching or poor posture can strain and hurt upper back muscles.
- Poor posture can strain the spine and shoulder blade ligaments, causing sprains.
- Suboptimal Scapular Movement: Poor posture limits scapular movement, affecting shoulder range of motion and causing pain.
- Leaning forward or slouching can cause intervertebral disc degeneration or herniation.
Effects of Daily Activities
Poor posture during daily tasks can increase shoulder blade pain risk:
- Desk Work: Long periods of sitting, especially with poor ergonomics, can strain the upper back by slouching and rounding the shoulders.
- Computer/Smartphone Use: The “tech neck” phenomenon—craning forward while using devices—strains the upper back and neck.
- Physical Activity: Heavy lifting or repetitive upper body movements, especially without form, can strain upper back muscles and ligaments.
- Driving: Poor posture and discomfort can result from long hours behind the wheel without back support or seat adjustment.
Improving posture and body mechanics daily can greatly reduce shoulder blade pain. Simple changes like a good workstation setup, regular breaks to stretch and move, and core and back strengthening exercises can help your upper back and reduce pain.
Common Shoulder Blade Pain Causes
Following are the common causes of shoulder blade pain:
Interscapular Pain
Interscapular pain can result from muscle strain or more serious conditions. Understanding these causes is essential for effective treatment and relief.
- Overuse, poor posture, sudden movements, or improper lifting can strain muscles or tendons.
- Sharp pain, muscle spasms, decreased range of motion, and upper back tenderness.
- Common tension-causing activities such as extended slouching, repetitive overhead activities, or awkward movements.
Intervertebral Disc Diseases
- A spinal disc’s soft center pushing through a crack in the tougher casing can irritate nerves.
- Age-related disc degeneration can cause bone spurs, disc height reduction, and spinal nerve compression. The affected nerves may cause upper back, arm, or neck pain, numbness, or weakness.
- Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease that causes pain and stiffness between shoulder blades due to wear and tear of joint cartilage, particularly in the cervical and thoracic spine regions.
- Joint pain, stiffness, limited flexibility, bone spurs, and movement discomfort.
- Deep, aching muscle pain, persistent pain that worsens with activity or stress, and tender muscle knots.
Stress and Tension
- Emotional stress can cause shoulder blade pain due to upper back and neck muscle tension.
- Stress activates the “fight or flight” response, causing muscle tension to prepare for a threat.
- Muscle stiffness, headaches, and pain increase.
Understanding the cause of pain is crucial to choosing the best treatment. Identification is the first step to relief and recovery, whether it’s ergonomic practices, targeted physical therapy, or relaxation techniques for emotional stress. If the pain persists or is accompanied by other symptoms, see a pain doctor in plano to rule out more serious conditions.
Symptoms of Pain Between Shoulder Blades
- Dull or Aching Pain: A consistent, mild discomfort felt deep between the shoulder blades.
- Sharp or Stabbing Sensation: Sudden, intense pain that may feel like being poked with a sharp object.
- Burning Feeling: A hot, irritated sensation that may spread across the upper back.
- Pain During Movement: Increases when lifting arms, twisting the torso, or taking deep breaths.
- Radiating Pain: Discomfort that may extend to the neck, shoulders, arms, or down the spine.
- Muscle Stiffness: Feeling of tightness or limited flexibility in the upper back area.
- Tenderness to Touch: Painful or sensitive spots when pressure is applied to the shoulder blade area.
- Muscle Spasms: Sudden tightening or cramping of the muscles around the shoulder blades.
- Reduced Range of Motion: Difficulty moving the shoulders or turning the upper body freely.
- Worsens with Posture: Pain may increase after sitting or standing for long periods, especially with poor posture.
Shoulder Blade Pain Treatments
Treatment for shoulder blade pain may require multiple treatments. A breakdown of options:
Treatments without Drugs
- Physical Therapy: Customized exercises to strengthen shoulder blade muscles, improve posture, and reduce pain. Muscle strain or imbalances, a common back pain cause, responds well to physical therapy.
- Chiropractic Care: Spine alignment and nerve relief for upper back and shoulder pain.
- Acupuncture: Thin needles are inserted into specific body points to relieve pain and discomfort.
Drug Treatments
Prescription or over-the-counter painkillers can temporarily relieve acute shoulder blade pain, especially mild to severe pain. Muscle relaxants can relieve pain and improve mobility in shoulder blade muscles.
Home Treatments
- Ice/Heat Therapy: Alternating ice and heat reduces shoulder blade pain and inflammation. Heat therapy relaxes tight muscles and improves blood circulation, while ice packs numb the pain.
- Gentle stretches can relieve upper back and shoulder blade tension and improve flexibility, relieving pain and discomfort.
When to Consider Surgery
If conservative treatments fail, surgery may be considered for severe pain between shoulder blades or underlying conditions. Herniated discs, severe osteoarthritis, and severe spinal stenosis may require surgery to relieve pain and function.
If pain persists and interferes with daily life despite non-invasive treatments, a specialist may recommend surgery. Surgery may be needed from the best pain management in plano to correct structural abnormalities or deformities in the spine or shoulder blades that cause pain.
Upper back pain sufferers should consult doctors for personalized advice and treatment. Managing lower back pain or shoulder blade pain requires understanding the causes and exploring all back pain relief options. Although one in 10 people will experience sciatic and upper back pain, it can be treated with the right approach.
To take action, recognize that shoulder blades may be the source of your discomfort. Recognizing pain and acknowledging that it may cause severe pain or lead to more serious issues is crucial. Upper back or middle back pain should not limit your lifestyle or quality of life. Consult experts for a thorough assessment and personalized care plan.
When to See a Doctor
If the pain between your shoulder blades is persistent, worsening, or accompanied by symptoms like chest tightness, difficulty breathing, or numbness in the arms, you should seek medical attention immediately. A healthcare professional can evaluate your symptoms, possibly order imaging tests, and recommend appropriate treatment, which may include physical therapy, medications, or lifestyle changes depending on the root cause.
Conclusion
Shoulder blades can cause pain for many reasons, but relief is possible. Don’t let back pain control your life. Contact a pain doctor in plano to discuss your treatment options and start recovering and feeling better. Maintaining your back is an investment in your health. Visit a doctor if your daily life is affected or if pain between shoulder blades persists. Shoulder blade pain is common, but you don’t have to live with it.
