Neck Pain
The back of your neck consists of the cervical spine, the muscles and ligaments that surround
and support it. The cervical spine is made up of seven bones called
vertebrae. The centre of
this column of vertebrae and discs is the spinal canal, which contains the spinal cord. The
spinal cord is made up of nervous tissue that carries messages to and from your brain. Nerves
from the spinal cord come out from between the vertebrae in the neck to transfer messages to
your neck and arms.
As we age, degeneration of the vertebrate and discs in the neck sets in. Bones from the neck
form bony outgrowth called
osteophytes or bone spurs. These bone spurs irritate nearby
muscles, ligaments and nerves, causing pain.
Neck pain can also be caused by accidents that jerk the neck violently and over-stretch the
soft tissues beyond their limits known as
whiplash. These quick action compresses your neck
vertebrae and strains the neck muscles as it pushes your head forward, thus impinging on
your nerves, causing pain, numbness and sending a radiating and tingling painful sensation
down towards your arms and fingers.
Bad posture during your daily activities can also contribute to your neck pain. For example,
sleeping on your stomach and holding the phone with your neck. Emotional stress can also
cause us to clench our neck muscles and tensing them up without you realising it.
Neck pain may radiate down to the shoulder or between the shoulder blades, it may also
radiate out into the arm. This is caused by irritation of the brachial plexus which is a network
of nerves that goes to the arm from the spinal cord in the neck. Acute pain can also force the
head to turn to one side, causing a one-sided or double-sided head pain.
The pain tends to come and go, with occasional flare-ups. You may have a pain attack after
unaccustomed use of your neck or if you sprain a neck muscle or ligament.
Shoulder Pain
The shoulder has a wider and more varied range of motion than any other joint in the body.
We can spread and bend our arms, rotate the shoulders and stretch upwards beyond the
shoulder joint. Our shoulder allows us to do everything from carrying dishes to swimming,
but this flexibility also makes the shoulder one of the most unstable joints in the body. The
older we get, the more vulnerable we are.
The shoulder joint form the connection between the trunk and the arm and is not held in
place with bones. It is made up of a complex arrangement of bones, ligaments, muscles, and
tendons also known as the shoulder girdle which functions to give strength and varied range
of motion to the arm.
The shoulder girdle includes three bones — the scapula, clavicle and humerus.
There are three joints in the shoulder girdle:
- the Glenohumeral Joint (GH), also known as the shoulder joint, is a ball-and-socket
joint where the humerus meets the glenoid on the scapula
- the Acromioclavicular Joint (AC) is a gliding joint where the acromial process on the
scapula links to the collar bone (clavicle). The ACJ is important in transmitting forces
through the upper limb and shoulder to the axial skeleton.
- the Sternoclavicular Joint (SC) is a double gliding joint between the sternum (breastbone) and the clavicle (collar bone). The Sternoclavicular Joint plays the part in all movements of the upper limbs, and is particularly important in throwing and
thrusting movements.
Some people face a restriction in the mobility of their shoulder joints. This can be due to
the muscles around the shoulder joints becoming inflamed and tender, thus restricting your
movements and causing pain in the shoulder.
Sometimes, a neck pain sufferer may experience shoulder pain as the pain from the neck may
have referred to the shoulder.
If you suffer from shoulder pain, you will find it difficult to carry out basic daily activities
such as combing your hair, putting on and removing your clothes or even just scratching your
back. In addition, you may find that you have difficulty raising your arms, playing games like
basketball, volleyball, tennis, badminton or any sports involving the rotation of the shoulder
joints.
Frozen Shoulder
Frozen shoulder, also known as
adhesive capsulitis, is a condition where there is a restriction
in the shoulder joints. Frozen shoulder creates intense contraction of the capsule that
surrounds and supports the shoulder girdle. Muscles around the shoulder joints are inflamed
and tender, restricting your movements and causing pain in the shoulder. This condition
typically happens to only one shoulder although one could have the condition on both
shoulders.
People with frozen shoulders will have difficulty with their normal daily activities such as
combing their hair, putting on their shirts and scratching their backs.
Rotator Cuff Injury
Rotator Cuff muscles are a group of shoulder blade muscles that support the arm on the
glenohumeral joint.
As the shoulder is nested in a shallow socket and there is a lack of ligaments in this region,
any weakness of the rotator cuff muscles makes it easy for partial dislocation, which is the
head of the shoulder partially sliding way out of the socket, or full dislocation, when there is
a complete slide out of the socket.
Injuries to rotator cuffs include: falling on an outstretched arm, lifting with faulty body
mechanics and repetitive arm activities especially those done overhead like throwing a
basketball or placing items on overhead shelves. Signs and symptoms of the injury include
pain and tenderness in the shoulder area, weakness of shoulder muscles and limitation of
shoulder motions.
Shoulder/Head/Neck Pain
Long hours of hunching over the computer and poor working ergonomics will cause rounded
shoulders and forwarded head posture, which gives rise to neck, shoulder pain, as well as
head pain as they fall along the cervical spine. Long-term hunching of the back will also lead
to shortness of breath and heart palpitations as it can congest your chest, lungs and thoracic
area which is the ribcage and the upper spine area.
Poor posture causes pain in these areas as well. Often, one do not realise that bad posture is
the cause of the pain and more often than not, they do not realise their postures have deviated
from the proper posture, causing the pain to get much worse as the body is out of alignment.
Some examples and causes of bad posture include walking with a slouch, carrying heavy
weights on one side of your shoulders, reading while lying on your stomach and sitting in a
curled-up position in front of the television.
Certain bad habits of daily activities can just be the cause, examples are:
- bad posture by slouching
- cradling the phone between the shoulder and neck for a prolonged period
- carrying a heavy load on one shoulder
- leaning on one leg while commuting in the bus or train
Back to top
