The Relationship Between Neck and Shoulder Pain

Given the close anatomical proximity involving the neck and shoulder, it's no question the 2 are intimately connected. In our frantic lifestyles of driving, hunching around computers, discussing to the phone, and of course pressure appearing from multiple sources, the muscles in the neck, upper-back and shoulders appear to tense up and harm at once. The question is, involving the neck along with the shoulder, which one is the "chicken" and which is the "egg?"


The neck gives rise to the nerves that innervate the top (C1-3 nerve roots), the shoulders (C4 5), as well as the arms (C5-T2). Therefore, there are 8 sets of nerves in the neck, 12 sets in the thoracic (center back area), and 6 sets in the lumbar or low-back area and 5 sets in the sacrum, all of which go to a specific destination enabling us to move our muscles also to feel warm, cold, sharp, muffled, vibration and position sense. When these nerves get pinched or irritated, they shed their perform and the capacity to feel, making it challenging to button a shirt, thread a needle, or select up tiny things. Therefore, the nerves arising from the neck, when pinched, can possess a dramatic effect on our ability to perform our desirable actions in which the shoulder, arm and hand use is necessitated.


On the other hand, when the shoulder is injured (for example a rotator cuff tear), this can also lead to neck difficulties. There are lots of manners the shoulder and vice-versa is affected by pain from the neck. When the shoulder is hurt, painfulness "tips" is relayed to the mind starting at the nerve endings located in the area of the shoulder harm, carrying nerve impulse involving the shoulder and also the neck, and lastly in the neck to the sensory cortex of the brain. That information is processed and conversation to the motor cortex prompts nerve signs to be repaid to the shoulder through the neck and to the wounded region (in this case, the shoulder). A re-flex muscle spasm often occurs as a consequence , serving as kind of an "internal cast" as the muscle spasm attempts to protect the injured shoulder. This can be a "vicious spiral" or neverending "loop" until the re-flex is interrupted (maybe by way of a chiropractic adjustment). Another means by which both regions become injured has to do with changes in function. We tend to change the way we go about our day-to-day chores when an injury occurs to the shoulder, including putting on a coat by leaning over to the other side otherwise. These useful changes can also give rise to neck pain. Because of this re-flex cycle, along with the close anatomic relationship between the neck and shoulder, as well as the "domino effect" of soft-tissue injuries which appear to alter the function at another joint degree, it is not surprising that equally the neck ALONG WITH the shoulder demand coincident treatment for ideal treatment gain. But, the good thing is, regardless which one is the "chicken or the egg," chiropractic treatments of shoulder injuries will typically contain the neck and vice versa.

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By Dr. Kip Rode