It can be tricky for you to figure out why you’re feeling back, shoulder and elbow pain. There are many issues that can cause these types of pain, and your pain could originate from any of these three locations.
Fortunately, physical therapists can help you discover why you’re feeling a combination of back, shoulder and elbow pain. The reason? These medical professionals are trained to address musculoskeletal disorders, and the source of your pain is likely an issue from this category. In addition, a physical therapist can help you find effective ways to address your pain.
These three issues could be causing your back, shoulder and elbow pain:
- A herniated cervical disc — The culprit behind your pain might not actually be based in your back, shoulder or elbow. It could be springing from a herniated disc in your neck. This condition occurs when a disc in your neck becomes deformed or torn, and it can commonly lead to cervical nerves being pinched or irritated. As a result of the nerve’s involvement, you might experience symptoms in your neck, shoulder, back and elbow.
- An injured trapezius muscle — The trapezius muscle is a fan-shaped structure that runs from the base of your skull, into your shoulder and down into your middle back. An injury to this muscle can cause pain to radiate into the shoulder or back. Such injuries may also irritate or pinch a nerve that runs down your arm, which can cause you to feel discomfort in your elbow or even your hand.
- An entrapped ulnar nerve — You have an ulnar nerve in each arm, and each of these nerves runs from your shoulder to your pinkie finger. Ulnar nerve entrapment occurs when this nerve is pinched at some point along its length. Unfortunately, this can occur fairly easily since the ulnar nerve is located close to the skin’s surface and not protected by other structures. When this nerve is pinched, people often experience:
- Pain that radiates from their shoulder to their hand.
- Numbness or tingling in various areas of the affected arm.
- Weakness in muscle response.
Additionally, some patients may experience pain in the upper back that has been referred from the shoulder.
Find help with your back, shoulder and elbow pain at Peak Performance
Struggling through your day with a combination of back, shoulder and elbow pain? Our Peak Performance Sports & Physical Therapy team is primed to help you address the source of your pain. We can discover the cause by performing a comprehensive free screening on you. Next, our expert clinicians can build you a personalized physical therapy plan intended to reduce your current pain and decrease your chances of future pain.
Contact us today for more information about all the services we offer to help you address pain or to schedule your initial physical therapy appointment.
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