How To Get Rid Of Your Upper Back and Shoulder Pain!

Upper Back Pain Is Common (But It’s Never Normal!)

Upper Back Pain is a very common reason for a visit to your MD or Chiropractor.

About 1/6th of all medical costs are from musculoskeletal injuries. Musculoskeletal (including lower back) injuries are the leading cause of disability, people being unable to work.

Understanding the Upper Back

The Upper Back (thoracic spine) has a different function than the neck or lower back.

The upper back is designed more for stability and protection than mobility… but the normal mobility of this area is very important!

It is made up of the twelve thoracic vertebrae, each of which is attached to a rib on either side.

The top nine ribs curve around the body and attach in the front at the sternum. The lower three ribs, often called the ‘floating ribs,’ do not go all the way to the front. They stop short and then is attached with soft tissues to the front.

This structure of the upper back, ribs, and sternum create a cage (the rib cage) that protects vital organs from harm. The stability of this region makes it much less likely that you will herniate a disc or experience some other disc injury. These disc injuries are more commonly seen in the neck and lower back regions.

Upper back pain is commonly the result of problems with the small joints of the upper back vertebrae, the ribs, and muscular/postural changes that can occur from a variety of reasons.

Upper back pain also frequently occurs from a neck problem or a shoulder problem among other possibilities.

Why is Upper Back Pain so Common?

It would be great if we could just point to one thing and tell you that this is the cause of all upper back pain and why people get it.

Unfortunately, it’s more complicated than that though.

We often put our Upper Backs in bad positions over prolonged periods of time that cause problems.

Injuries can occur either through repetitive motions and postures or in a sudden trauma.

In the case of a sudden trauma, like a car accident, if the position and structure of your Upper Back Area in not able to sustain itself during the trauma injury results.

Repetitive stresses and abnormal postures occur in many different occupations.

This is more likely if you have a job that requires a lot of sitting, like police officers, truck drivers, desk workers, etc. Other jobs require frequent lifting and twisting like heavy laborers, people in manufacturing (like Cooper Tire employees), construction workers, mechanics, landscapers, nurses, and CNAs among so many others.

Many other factors also effect if and when you will get Upper Back Pain outside of the thoracic spine itself… these factors include everything from the way your unique nervous system is functioning to other disease processes to systemic inflammation and more.

All these things and many more can lead to Back Pain.

The pain is often the result of mechanical problems in the back that changes the way that it functions, the way it moves, resulting in pain.

The specific pain generating source might be in the small joints that allow proper motion, the discs (less common in this area), the musculature, or the nervous system.

Upper Back pain is a Serious Problem.

It doesn’t just cost you money. It ends up costing you the ability to do your normal activities and to enjoy life.

When you’re experiencing back pain, it interferes with virtually every part of your life. You have trouble performing your normal work and home activities, doing yardwork, playing with you kids (or grandkids), participating in your favorite hobbies or sports, and even causes major problems with sleeping.

I know what you’re thinking, “I’ve experienced most of these problems. I just want to get rid of it.”

Upper Back And Shoulder Pain Treatment Options

If you’ve been suffering from upper back pain, then you’ve probably tried many different things to get better… this might include things like trying heat or ice, topical creams, rest, over the counter pain relievers, etc.

Some people may have chest pain from the problem and go to the hospital (a good choice if you’re having a heart attack!). They’ll do many tests of your blood and heart looking for a heart problem.

If no heart problem is found, some medications might be given for pain. It depends on what they find or think is causing the pain.

If you continue experiencing the pain… and many people do.

You probably go see your family doctor. Often the symptom of pain will be treated with the use of prescription pain relievers and muscle relaxers.

If you keep having pain, you usually end up having an MRI to better look at your upper back.

Depending upon the results of the MRI, it’s often recommended to try Physical Therapy and/or spinal injections.

Some people may show improvement, unfortunately many don’t.

This often leads to a visit with an orthopedic surgeon or a neurosurgeon with 2 outcomes…

1. Surgery is recommended.
2. You’re told that there’s nothing that can be done and ‘you’ll have to learn to live with it.’

The reality is that virtually every treatment for upper back pain can help the right person with the right problem.

What can you do to finally get out of pain and get your life back?

Unfortunately, most people end up seeing so many different doctors, trying so many types of medications, and treatment before they ever end up in a chiropractic office. I’ve seen this happen a thousand times or more.

The rightfully frustrated patient ends up coming in to see me after everything else fails only to find that they are able to get out of pain and get their life back.

The amount of time and money spent before coming in is often staggering… not to mention the weeks, months, or years of suffering. That’s time you will never get back.

Chiropractic Care should be considered first, not last if you’re suffering with Upper Back or Shoulder Area Pain.

Chiropractic care is non-invasive, it doesn’t rely upon drugs or surgery. It’s a great place to start.

A well respected review of the evidence in the Annals of Internal Medicine in Oct 2007, states that chiropractic care is considered effective for acute and chronic back pain.¹

The Journal of the American Medical Association in 2013, made a similar recommendation that patients consider chiropractic care for treatment of back pain.²

Medications may help ease your pain.

The problem is that they do not address what caused your pain, plus there is another problem.

Unfortunately, medications used to treat the symptoms of upper back pain can also have side effects that can range from…

serious stomach and kidney problems (as seen in many cases of long term use of over the counter pain relievers),
liver problems,
cardiovascular problems – including heart attacks and death,
addiction (particularly with opiate pain relievers), and…
increased body fat, bone loss, muscle loss, weakened connective tissue, and blood sugar problems (a side effect of steroids).

Addiction associated with prescription pain medicine is now classified as an epidemic in the United States! ³

The number of spinal fusions has jumped an incredible 500% over the last decade! ⁴

It’s not that most surgeons are bad or looking to take advantage of you, it’s just that medical options are limited when it comes to helping people recover from Back Pain.

This is the problem with our current mainstream approach to pain and musculoskeletal problems. It’s apparent that current approaches aren’t working for so many people because of how common the problem is and how likely these problems are to continue… becoming chronic.

Why should you consider Chiropractic first?

Chiropractic provides a primary care approach for the prevention, diagnosis and conservative management of back pain and spinal disorders that often allows patients to reduce or avoid the need for these riskier treatments that are more likely to have complications.

A study of Washington state injured workers found that only 1.5 percent of those who visited a doctor of chiropractic first for back pain later had surgery, compared to 42.7 percent of those who saw a surgeon first! ⁵

Surgery does help in a small percent of people with Back Problems. It’s not necessary for treatment of every case of arthritis, disc bulge, or disc herniation though… not by a long shot.

Very often, conservative Chiropractic care can help. Chiropractic can likely help you.

Even if you’ve had past lower back surgeries, I’ve found that many people get better with Chiropractic care.

What should you do next if you would like to get out of Lower Back Pain and are looking for a Doctor to help your Upper Back and Shoulder Pain?

Here’s what you should do…

Give my office, Hagebusch Chiropractic, a call at 903-793-1084 or Email Us and ask for a free consultation with Dr. Hagebusch (a Texarkana Chiropractor with over 20 years of experience treating thousands of people with Back Pain)…

OR just fill out the form below and we’ll contact you.

I’ll go through your history and talk with you about the problems that you’re having.

If I believe that I can help you, I’ll let you know and if not then I’ll give you recommendations on other treatment options that are likely to help you.

If you are a good fit with a great chance of success, then I’ll customize a plan of Chiropractic Care for your Back Pain to help get out of pain and get your life back.

I’m offering this as a free service to see if I might be able to help you at absolutely no risk.

Fair enough?

Dr. Marc Hagebusch
Doctor of Chiropractic
board eligible Chiropractic Neurologist

Hagebusch Chiropractic

4025 N Stateline Ave Texarkana, TX 75503
903-793-1084 Email Us

References
1. Chou R, Hoyt Huffman LH. Nonpharmacologic therapies for acute and chronic low back pain: a review of the evidence for an American Pain Society/American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guideline. Ann of Internal Med 2 Oct. 2007;147(7):492-504.
2. Goodman DM, Burke MA, Livingston EH. Low Back Pain. JAMA Patient Page JAMA. 2013;309(16):1738. doi:10.1001/ jama.2013.3046.
3. Unintentional Drug Poisoning in the United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010. Prescription Drug Abuse. White House Office on National Drug Policy. Accessed November 2013.
4. Whoriskey, Keating. Boom in spinal fusions questioned. Washington Post. Page 1. October 28, 2013; Rise in spinal fusion surgeries driven partly by financial incentives. Washington Post. November 13, 2013.
5. Keeney BG, Fulton-Kehoe D, Turner JA, Wickizer TM, Chan KC, Franklin GM. Early predictors of lumbar spine surgery after occupational back injury: results from a prospective study of
workers in Washington workers in Washington state. Spine (Phila PA 1976) 2013 May 15;38(11):953-964.

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