What Causes Concurrent Neck and Shoulder Pain, and How Do I Treat It?
Channel: Fitness Blends
Date: 2021-01-30

Simultaneous pain in the neck and shoulder is common, and is usually the result of a strain or sprain.

Pain can range from mild to very severe and can include:

tingling
shooting pain
stiffness
numbness
spasms
soreness
In some cases, neck and shoulder pain can be a sign of a heart attack or a stroke. These are serious medical emergencies that require immediate help.

Rarely, it can be caused by gallstones and certain cancers.

Neck and shoulder pain causes
Most neck and shoulder pain is due to sprains and strains from sports, overexertion, or incorrect posture.

Soft tissue injuries
Neck and shoulder pain is often due to an injury of the soft tissue. Soft tissue includes your muscles, tendons, and ligaments. The term is used to distinguish it from the hard tissue of bones and cartilage.

Soft tissue injuries can cause many kinds of pain, including:

stiffness
headache
muscle spasms
Rotator cuff tear
The rotator cuff is a group of four tendons that hold your upper arm (humerus) into your shoulder blade.

A rotator cuff tear can be caused by a singular injury (such as a fall) or by repeated stress over time, which can be common in sports that require a lot of arm and shoulder use.

Aging can also contribute to rotator cuff tears. Reduced blood supply can slow down the body’s natural ability to repair damage. And bone spurs can form at the joint, damaging the rotator cuff tendons.

A sudden tear will usually cause intense pain in your shoulder and immediate weakness in your upper arm.

Tears due to repetitive use may cause shoulder pain and arm weakness over time. Activities that require reaching up or behind, such as combing your hair, may become painful.

Whiplash
Whiplash is the tearing of muscles, tendons, and ligaments in your neck from a sudden movement of your neck. It typically occurs in an auto collision.

Other common causes include:

contact sports
being shaken
falls
a blow to the head
Symptoms can take 24 hours or longer to appear and include:

neck pain and stiffness
headaches
dizziness
blurred vision
constant tiredness
Most people recover fully within three months but some can have chronic pain and headaches for years afterward.

Cervical spondylosis (cervical osteoarthritis)
Cervical spondylosis is the name given to age-related wear of the spinal discs of your neck. It’s a very common condition, affecting more than 85 percent of people over age 60.

Your spine is made up of bony segments known as vertebrae. In between each vertebra is soft material known as discs.

As you age, your discs lose water content and become stiffer. Your vertebrae move closer together. This can irritate the lining of the joints in a condition known as cervical osteoarthritis.

As part of the arthritis, you can also develop bone spurs.

Symptoms of cervical osteoarthritis typically include neck pain and stiffness. In more severe cases it can lead to a pinched nerve.

Pinched nerve (cervical radiculopathy)
A pinched nerve in your neck can cause pain that radiates toward your shoulder. This is also known as cervical radiculopathy.

Cervical radiculopathy most often comes from changes in your spine due to aging or injury.

Bone spurs can cause a pinching of the nerves that run through the hollow space in the vertebrae. If this happens in your neck, it can cause a pinched nerve.

Symptoms include:

tingling or numbness in your fingers or hand
weakness in the muscles of your arm, shoulder, or hand
Herniated disc
When cervical discs shrink, vertebrae come closer together and can sometimes lead to one or more of the discs getting damaged.

If the soft inner portion of a disc protrudes through its harder exterior, it’s called a slipped, herniated, or prolapsed disc.

Symptoms of a slipped or herniated disc include:

pain
numbness
tingling
aching
a burning sensation in your neck
Posture and sleeping position
Holding your neck in an awkward position for a prolonged time can lead to strains in the muscles and tendons of your neck and shoulders.

Some of the postures and activities that commonly contribute to neck and shoulder pain are:

sleeping on too high a pillow or a stack of pillows
grinding or clenching your teeth at night
sitting at a computer or over a phone with your neck strained forward or tilted up
suddenly jerking your neck during exercise
Heart attack
While sudden pain in the chest or arms may be a sign of a heart attack, pain and numbness in the neck, back, or jaw are also symptoms.

MEDICAL EMERGENCY