As humans, it is often are natural tendency to think about things literally and straightforward. So it’s no surprise that when we experience dysfunction with our shoulder, we assume that the problem is with our shoulder. While that can certainly be true in many cases, it is also very possible that the shoulder issue could be resulting from an injury in the neck. This is because the nerves that allow you to feel pain throughout your body run from the brain and down through the neck and spine.
An injury to the neck or spine can lead to pain throughout the body, not just in the area of the initial injury. The most common cause of this pain are pinched nerves, which occurs when a nerve in the neck is irritated or compressed at the location where it branches away from the spinal cord. This can result in pain that radiates into the shoulder and may also cause muscle weakness or numbness down the arms and into the hands. This pain can range from dull to sharp but is usually at least fairly constant, while the weakness and numbness in the arms and hands can come and go.
A pinched nerve in the neck can be caused by several common and pre-existing neck conditions. This includes cervical degenerative disc disease, cervical herniated disc, cervical osteoarthritis, and cervical foraminal stenosis. If you have been diagnosed with any of these neck problems in the past and have begun to experience shoulder pain, it is very possible that the pain could be a result of the neck condition.
If you are experiencing radiating pain in your shoulder, it is important to seek a doctor’s advice sooner rather than later. With chiropractors being specialized in treating conditions dealing with the spine and the nerves around it, visiting a chiropractor as a first visit is a good step to take. If the problem is indeed originating from a nerve stemming from the spine, a chiropractor will be able to accurately diagnose the injury and develop a treatment plan to alleviate the pain. If the condition goes untreated and worsens, it is possible for permanent nerve damage and neuropathy to occur.
If you or someone you know has recently suffered an injury to the neck or spine and have since been experiencing pain in that area, Advanced Chiropractic & Rehab Inc. may be able to help. Give us a call at (330) 726-7404 to set up a consultation and we’ll see what we can do to help you improve your daily quality of life. We have been servicing the Youngstown and Mahoning Valley area since 2001 with convenient locations in Boardman and Hubbard. At Advanced Chiropractic & Rehab Inc., we are a multi-disciplinary rehabilitation group that treats work comp injuries, whiplash, sports injuries and specializes in much more than just low back pain.