Pain behind shoulder blade

Shoulder blade pain is one of the common problems people consult their doctors about. Every year, some 4 million of people only in America look for some medical assistance because of the pain they felt in the shoulders.

How does it Look Like and What are Possible Treatments?

Pain behind the shoulder blades may cause restricted movements of the upper part of the body. Because of this pain you may experience inability to lift your arms or to carry anything in them. In some cases, even simple things like sitting, standing or bending over may cause worsening of your pain. Sleeping could also lead to progressive and intensive pain behind the shoulder.

For that reason, consult your doctor every time you experience shoulder pain which lasts for several days, whether it comes while resting or working with something. Proper diagnosis is extremely important to treat the pain and its cause accordingly.

Possible treatments include: anti-inflammatory drugs, ice and heat packs, proper rest, exercises for the shoulders, massage. Cortisone injections are necessary only in serious cases of shoulder blade pain.

What Can Cause Pain behind Shoulder Blade?

The list of all causes of the pain located behind the shoulder pain is very long, but we will try to list most of the possibilities.

Bad posture and body mechanics are some of the common reason for the pain behind the shoulder blades. Make sure to walk, sit, stand and work with the spine in upright position at all times, to avoid facing pain behind the shoulder blades. If you are bending your shoulder a lot, it may also be the cause of your problem with them.

Constant physical or mental stress you are exposed to could also lead to shoulder pain, as well as some pinched nerve in the neck or trapped nerve somewhere in the arm.

Insufficient amount of sleep and/or imbalanced diet can also affect the condition of your shoulders and provoke shoulder blade pain.

Certain problems of the shoulders are very likely to lead to pain behind the shoulders. Pulled shoulder muscles because of over-stretching, rotating or Flexing or dislocation or separation of the shoulder provoked by structural injuries to the components of the shoulder joint and its surrounding are well known reasons for shoulder blade pain. Inflammation of the tendons (tendonitis), rotator cuff injuries and tears, bursitis and inflammation of the ball and socket joint of the shoulder and upper arm bone can cause pain and discomfort behind the shoulder blade.

There are also some other causes of this problems, such as pancreatitis, various ulcers, pneumonia, pulmonary embolus, aortic dissection or angina, but also some lung and cervical spine issues, arthritis and osteoporosis. Gallstones and gall bladder inflammation may also lead to the same problem. Cancer of the upper end of the humerus, bone cancer, metastasized breast cancer or multiple sclerosis (MS) can be some of severe reasons behind shoulder blade pain.