Pain, whatever its location, intensity and cause, always signals a dysfunction in the body. If it appears regularly, you should not seek immediate treatment, since the causes of the pathology may be different. First you need to find out why your back hurts in the shoulder blade area.
What is the nature of pain?
If you pay attention to the causes of discomfort in the shoulder blades, you need to understand that they have a different character. Back pain should be classified as follows:
- Pulling or pain.It appears due to severe compression of the nerve roots, changes in muscle tone and damage to the spine.
- Long lasting, very intense.It is caused by neuralgia, a traumatic injury to the scapula.
- Intense and unexpected pain.It is typical for complications of stomach ulcers, spastic contraction of the gallbladder muscles and heart attacks.
- Paroxysmal painwith a gradual increase in intensity. It is also caused by an ulcer.
- If there is no back pain in the shoulder blades, but the patient feelsnumbness, pressure, then this may be the result of excessive emotional stress or inadequate physical stress.
As for the location of the pain, it can be interscapular, subscapular, and can also be located inside the joint. Now you can find out why the discomfort occurs.
Diseases of internal organs as a provoking factor
If discomfort appears in the back below the shoulder blade, it may be due to normal muscle tension. However, if it returns periodically and its intensity increases, then it is better not to hesitate and urgently consult a doctor. There are the following causes of pain:
- Heart muscle infarction.The pain under the shoulder blade in this case is strong and sharp. Additional signs are: spread of discomfort over a wide area, increased sweating, increased heart rate. A peculiarity of a heart attack is that even taking nitrates does not help calm the attack.
- Gastrointestinal ulcer.In this case, the pain syndrome has an increasing and paroxysmal character. Discomfort often appears after eating in the epigastric region. The pain radiates to the sternum, lower back and heart. The patient also experiences heartburn and belching. He feels nauseous and may vomit.
- Perforation of a gastric ulcer.It represents the appearance of a hole in the wall of the organ, which opens into the abdominal cavity. Here, the person requires emergency surgery. Symptoms of pathology are clearly expressed. The patient feels unexpected sharp pain under the shoulder blades, shock, and the abdominal muscles are strongly tense. Cold sweat appears on the face and the skin turns pale. The patient's breathing becomes rapid, and upon palpation of the abdomen he feels severe discomfort.
- Spasm of the gallbladder muscles.Pain in the shoulder blade area is cutting or stabbing. Unpleasant sensations do not last long. The pain appears in the back right below the ribs, which then radiates to the neck, collarbone and jaw.
- Subphrenic abscess.It is characterized by an accumulation of pus in the diaphragm. The pain gradually increases, general weakness and loss of appetite appear, and the temperature may increase. There is pallor of the skin, as well as increased sweating.
- Renal pathologies.Here the pain is localized not only in the back area, under the shoulder blades, but also in the lower back. The nature of the sensations is pulling, but during the development of renal colic it becomes acute. The patient cannot go to the toilet normally.
- Pneumonia or pleurisy.This pathology is characterized by increased pain when coughing.
- Neuralgia.Here the pain is felt mainly under the shoulder blade, more often on the left. The nature of the sensations is paroxysmal and they become stronger with any physical activity. The pain syndrome can also be burning. Coughing causes shingles.
- Muscle and ligament pathologies.Back pain is painful and appears periodically. After rest, comfort disappears.
Furthermore, it is worth highlighting psychological problems, which also cause pain under the shoulder blade. Severe stress or emotional tension, neurosis or increased anxiety are an obvious cause of discomfort. The fact is that a person's back muscles are tense, which leads to spasms, leading to pinching and inflammation of the nerve processes. The pain is pressing and radiates to other parts of the body. There is a feeling of pressure and stiffness in the shoulder blades. A person worries in fear for his life, he lacks air, his heart begins to beat and a lump appears in his throat.
Skeletal diseases as a cause of pain
There are many spinal diseases that cause back pain in the shoulder blades. The most common of them are:
- Osteochondrosis of the neck.This causes periodic pain that radiates to the shoulder blade area. The disease develops gradually and is incurable. Additional symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are: stiffness of movements, painful head turns. The nature of the sensations is painful, intensifying with each movement. A person's neck area begins to go numb.
- Disc protrusionin the cervical region.
- Radiculitis.
All of these diseases cause quite intense pain and prevent a person from moving normally and leading a professional life. Naturally, it is necessary to fight them, but this should be done at the earliest stages of development. If you often have back pain, and the syndrome itself does not disappear for a long time, try to see a doctor as soon as possible. Self-medication is dangerous.
Damage to the shoulder blade as a cause of pain
Often, pain in the shoulder blade is an independent phenomenon and is not accompanied by other pathologies. The main cause of discomfort lies in the processes that occur directly inside the joint itself. Here are the reasons for the discomfort:
- Injury.This appears very rarely, because this part of the skeleton is protected as much as possible by the muscles. A fracture or other type of injury most often occurs following an accident or a fall from height or a very violent blow. Immediately after receiving the injury, the victim feels sharp pain in the back, hematoma and swelling. The functionality of the joints of the limbs and shoulders deteriorates or is completely absent.
- Pterygoid blade.It develops due to weakness of the muscular corset. The shoulder girdle completely loses its functionality, the pain in the back of the shoulder blades is painful. When moving, the discomfort intensifies.
- Scapular crunch.This is a congenital abnormality of the structure of the scapula. It rarely develops following abnormal physical activity. In this case, pain in the shoulder blades is considered an additional symptom.
- Osteomyelitis.This is an infectious bone lesion, which is accompanied by inflammation and the appearance of pus. It causes a slight displacement of the shoulder blade, intense pain, inflammation and redness of the skin at the joint, a change in basal temperature and reduced mobility.
It is better not to delay in looking for the causes of pain, since this is a serious pathological process, the prognosis of treatment of which depends on the timeliness of diagnosis.
Other causes of pain
In addition to the presented pathologies, other causes of pain under the scapula can be identified:
- Malignant tumor.
- Tuberculosis of bones.
- Polio.
- Myositis.
- Mechanical injury to the back, constant adherence to poor sitting posture.
- Pregnancy.
- Different types of posture disorders: kyphosis, scoliosis, lordosis.
- Spondyloarthrosis.
- Intervertebral disc herniation.
To begin treatment and for it to be effective, it is necessary to have an examination. Based on laboratory tests and instrumental techniques, a specialist can make an accurate diagnosis.
Pathology diagnosis
The first thing to do is simply to consult different specialists. So, if you have back pain, whether the discomfort is dull or acute, you should contact the following doctors: therapist, neurologist, cardiologist, orthopedist and traumatologist, as well as a pulmonologist. Consultation with a surgeon is important. The examination includes the following procedures:
- MRIOrCT.
- If you have back pain below your shoulder blades, you should definitely do thisx-ray, which helps identify spinal disorders.
- Laboratory tests, making it possible to detect the inflammatory process.
- ECG.
Specialists will also perform neurological tests. If after a night's sleep you have back pain in the shoulder blades, you should first change your mattress. If the problem persists, it may be an illness.
Treatment of pathology
If your back begins to hurt after sleeping or after movement, and coughing or taking shallow breaths only aggravates the situation, you should definitely start treatment for the pathology causing the discomfort. Additionally, therapy should be comprehensive, for example:
- In case of injury, pain is relieved by painkillers. It is also necessary to limit mobility, which is ensured by various bandages or orthopedic devices. Additionally, physiotherapeutic procedures are used for treatment: electrophoresis with the use of drugs, ultrasound.
- To resolve neurological problems, it is necessary to consult an appropriate specialist. He will prescribe medications, massages and electrical stimulation.
- If the back hurts in the shoulder blades due to osteomyelitis, the patient will have to take antibacterial agents. Surgery is often used to eliminate a purulent focus.
- Tuberculosis requires specific treatment, carried out in special institutions.
- If a patient is diagnosed with malignant bone disease, it is unlikely that it will be possible to do without surgical intervention.
- If the shoulder blades hurt very much due to osteochondrosis, treatment should be comprehensive and comprehensive. To eliminate the source of inflammation, non-hormonal anti-inflammatory drugs are used. Manual therapy is considered helpful. A good effect is achieved using acupuncture and a needle applicator.
- If a myocardial infarction is suspected, the patient is urgently hospitalized. Here he is given complete rest and appropriate treatment with anticoagulants and fibrinolytic drugs. Glucocorticosteroids are usually used to eliminate pain.
Disease prevention
So that pain under the shoulder blades, the main causes of the appearance of which were mentioned above, does not appear, it is necessary to follow preventive measures:
- Give up a passive lifestyle and bad habits.
- Regularly perform exercises or a physiotherapy complex after sleep and throughout the day.
- Take periodic courses of therapeutic or preventive massage.
- Watch your posture.
- Strengthens the body's defenses.
- Avoid nervous stress and strong emotional experiences.
- Manage your working time correctly to have the opportunity to rest.
- Buy an orthopedic mattress.
- Sleep should last at least 8 hours and no more than 10 hours per day.
- If a person has health problems, they should be treated in the early stages.
- A pregnant woman should wear a corset or support bandage to reduce stress on the spine.
Thanks to such preventive measures, you can prevent the appearance of pain in the shoulder blades. But if it already exists, you cannot delay a visit to the doctor.