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Thoracic Back Pain
Thoracic back pain describes discomfort and related symptoms in the middle back region. Patients with thoracic pain often complain of stiffness and
pain between the shoulder blades
which can definitely impede on the functionality of the upper body.
Middle back pain
often “bleeds” into the neck or shoulder region, since the muscles of the middle back work so closely with these other anatomical areas.
Thoracic Back Pain Conditions
The majority of mid back complaints are due to muscular injury. The middle
back muscles
are used for so many different tasks and are frequent victims of overuse.
Back muscle pain
is generally not serious, but may be very uncomfortable for a short time frame. The middle back region is not prone to
degenerative back pain
nearly as much as the lumbar and cervical regions. The middle back is made for structure and support, not flexibility. Therefore, this area does not suffer the same wear and tear as the other more mobile areas of the
spine.
Regardless, it is still possible to experience
herniated discs,
degenerative disc disease,
arthritis
and
facet joint syndrome
in the thoracic spine. Just remember that these conditions are rarely symptomatic and are usually not responsible for long term
chronic back pain
syndromes.
Thoracic outlet syndrome
can be a specific non-spinal cause of persistent upper back, shoulder and arm symptoms.
Thoracic Back Pain Facts
Middle back pain is the least common
dorsopathy
complaint. Chronic pain conditions are rarely exclusive to the mid back area. Many patients with a primary pain zone located in a more problematic spinal region suffer secondary pain in the middle back region. This secondary pain often comes and goes as the primary pain intensifies or lessens. Patients with this particular condition are usually suffering from a
psychosomatic back pain
syndrome which enacts regional symptoms due to
ischemia,
rather than location specific symptoms based on a single
spinal abnormality.
Recommendation on Thoracic Back Pain
This is a type of pain I did not experience regularly. I did occasionally hurt some muscles in between the shoulders, either in martial arts training or doing chin-ups. My pain was based in the
lumbar spine
and occasionally moved to the neck. Some patients have a similar pain profile, but substitute the thoracic region for the cervical. This substitute middle back pain is often blamed on the primary problematic lumbar region influencing the mid spine and causing symptoms. This is almost never the actual reason for the additional mid back pain. 9 out of 10 cases will be the direct result of
oxygen deprivation
to the entire middle and lower back regions. This type of pain is very common. If you are experiencing this combination of lower and middle back pain, I recommend learning more about how and why ischemic pain syndromes work. You will be happy you did when you can use this knowledge to cure your pain 100%.
Thoracic Back Pain to Lower Back Pain Home
9/24/08 Revised 8/25/09
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