Possible causes behind shoulder pain and what to do about it?
Pain is evitable in our life and when you reach a particular age, there is no escaping. One such kind of pain that seems to affect most of us lately is Shoulder blade pain. For the unversed, the shoulder blade is a triangular bone in the upper back. It doesn’t always have an obvious cause. It can be a symptom of something serious you did not know about or have been ignoring to date. Or, it could be the fact you slept on it wrong and have poor posture at the computer. Whatever the case may be, shoulder pain makes it difficult to move the shoulder or arm.
Here we will go through the several possible causes of pain and symptoms related to it and what can you do about it:
Injury: If you have lifted a heavy object, or you fall from a height, or worst you met with an accident, chances are very high that you have strained or injured your shoulder blade. Look out for the signs such as darkening of the skin, bruising, numbness, and swelling. Usually, this kind of strain can get resolved with care at home by applying ice to the area or massaging the area gently.
Arthritis: It refers to conditions that affect the joints and surrounding tissues. The most common form of this condition is osteoarthritis in which the cartilage within a joint wears down over time. If you are suffering from arthritis and experiencing movement restrictions and stiffness in your shoulder, you should see a shoulder doctor in Orlando to help you manage your condition.
Musculoskeletal: It is found that the most common cause of shoulder blade pain is muscle strain. This usually happens from short-term overuse of your arms wherein you have started a new exercise program or you have done lifting that you are not used to. It is prominently felt in your shoulder blade but usually, the pain manifests in the form of back pain. There are many tips you can follow to avoid back pain in the future if the underlying source of back pain is not any disease.
Heart problem: The shoulder blade alone can also be a symptom of heart problems such as heart attack, aortic dissection, and pericarditis. It can lead to a serious cardiac event thus, it is always recommended to not let it get undiagnosed.
So, what to do about it?
The reason why you are having shoulder pain are several but usually, it happens because of trigger points. In plain language, the trigger point is a tight painful knot of muscle fiber; very tender to touch and can be felt under the skin. Shoulder blades are prone to trigger points. Any muscle can have one or more trigger points. Treatments for shoulder blade trigger points vary depending on the cause, but experts seem to suggest a trigger point injection that will be injected in each trigger point to help you get relief from pain. Result? Easy movement and no limitation on movement.
When should I go for it?
The right time for injection is when you have a painful trigger point that is radiating from the main point to the surrounding area. The whole process is performed by a health care professional, pain-management doctors. Afterward, trigger point injection is given directly into the trigger point for pain management.
If you have tried endless massages and other chiropractic adjustments for your shoulder blade pain and still have not got relief from your muscle knots then you must go for a trigger point injection.
Usually, the pain goes away with manual adjustment, but sometimes shoulder blade trigger points if not treated well could lead to other conditions and thus become impossible to remove no matter how many self-massage tricks or stretches you try. In such a scenario, TPI can provide immediate relief from muscle knots.
