By Michael Watson


The shoulder and the neck are not just in close proximity with each other but are also related in anatomical and functional terms. There are a number of structures that cross from the neck to the shoulders. These include muscles, ligaments, blood vessels and ligaments. This is the reason why pain originating from the shoulders may also be experienced from the cervical region and vice versa. There are a number of things relating to neck and shoulder pain Edmonton patients need to know.

Symptoms may be termed acute or chronic. The former term is used when they have been present for two weeks or less. The most commonly encountered causes in this case include infections and trauma. Chronic pain is that which has been longstanding (usually more than two weeks). The causes include prolonged infections (tuberculosis and osteomyelitis), trauma, fibromyalgia and degenerative conditions.

Soft tissue injury is by far the commonest reason for pain in the shoulders and the cervical region. In motor vehicle accidents, sudden deceleration results in what is known as whiplash injury that affects the back of the neck and the shoulder. It is a potentially life threatening injury that requires admission to hospital. Most of the other cases are mainly attributable to strains affecting the muscles and ligaments.

One of the things that you need to do is to have a rest and to elevate the injured area. This serves to reduce further injury and to initiate the process of healing. Self made remedies that can be considered include the use of cold packs, heat therapy, pain medications and massage therapy. Cold packs are useful in reducing the inflammatory response and the warm compressions help in improving blood flow to the area.

If symptoms do not respond to over the counter analgesic agents and other home remedies, you need to consider making a visit to the hospital so that the exact cause can be identified. The doctor will usually take a clinical history of your problem and examine the affected area so as to determine the character of the pain and whether or not other parts of the body are affected. Investigations such as the MRI and CT scan will most likely be needed.

One of the conditions that imaging studies help diagnose is degenerative arthritis in the cervical region. Degenerative changes in the cervical vertebra become increasingly common as we advance in age. The intervertebral disc space is progressively narrowed by bone spikes known as osteophytes. The nerves that leaving the spine through these spaces may be pinched and this causes pain both in the neck and the shoulders. This is known as cervical radiculopathy.

Other conditions which may be diagnosed include dislocated joints, tumors, fractures, bursitis and so on. The definitive management will depend on the findings after you have been evaluated. Most of the conditions will be treated medically with just a few requiring surgical intervention. For persons that are at an increased risk of suffering from these types of injuries (such as athletes), regular stretching exercises will help reduce the incidence.

The innervation of the shoulder and some abdominal structures is the same. Injury to these structures causes pain that is referred to the shoulders. This may be seen in case of gall bladder disease. Such cases are very rare and take a bit of time to diagnose.




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