Trapped Nerve in Shoulder – Pain Relief Tips

Need Some Shoulder Pain Relief?

Have you go that trapped nerve shoulder pain feeling for the first time or again? Well today I wanted to talk a bit about is it a trapped nerve in your shoulder or something else like a rotator cuff syndrome?

I know that when you have pain that all kinds of thoughts can be running through your mind. Most people assume it is a trapped nerve pain but is it always the case. Read on to find out more on the difference between a trapped nerve shoulder pain and a rotator cuff pain.

Trapped Nerve Shoulder Pain Symptoms

Lets start by looking at the common symptoms of trapped nerve shoulder pain. People may come into the chiropractors office saying things like:

The shoulder pain is a deep dull ache or a sharp pain,
The pain is on the inside of my shoulder blade,
The shoulder pain is worse when I rest,
The pain is at the back of my shoulder,
The shoulder pain shoots into my elbow,
The pain in the shoulder doesn’t go away taking pain killers,
I get pins and needles in the fingers.

Does this sound familiar. These might be some of the symptoms of a trapped nerve pain in the shoulder. Now let’s compare another common pain in the shoulder, rotator cuff syndrome.

Rotator Cuff Pain Symptoms

There is a major group of muscle that holds the arm bone, humerus, in the shoulder joint called the rotator cuff muscle group. Someone who goes to see their doctor with rotator cuff pain symptoms might say:

The shoulder pain started when I picked up a box,
My shoulder hurts when I pull the car door open,
I can’t reach my shoulder above my head because the pain is severe,
My arm feels weak,
The pain is sharp when I move my arm,
The pain is like a deep dull ache when I try to lay on my side in bed,
I can’t reach behind to do my bra strap on,
I thought the pain would go away after a few days of rest.

As you can see a trapped nerve shoulder pain and rotator cuff injury pain sound very similar except for one or two points.

Shoulder Pain Causes

Trapped Nerve Pain

The cause of a trapped nerve pain in the shoulder could be coming from an inflammation around the nerve in the neck. Shoulder pain coming from a trapped nerve in your neck has been discussed before on ChiroCentre. Some other articles already covering the cause of a trapped nerve in your neck causing shoulder pain are:

Rotator Cuff Injury Pain

A rotator cuff injury pain is a soft tissue (muscle, tendon etc…) source of pain compared to a nerve pain. The typical causes of pain in the rotator cuff muscle are:

Strain
You can create a muscle strain of the rotator cuff muscles. Typically this happens with protecting a fall, lifting, pulling or pushing from the shoulder joint straining the muscles. You can cause a incomplete or complete tear of the rotator cuff muscles.
Tendonitis
A tendon is the end of the muscle that attaches into the bone. The tendons of the rotator cuff muscles can become inflamed or degenerate from over pressure. This usually happens with a condition called impingement syndrome of the shoulder.
Bursitis
Bursae are fluid filled sacs that act as a cushion between bones and tendons. The bursa of the shoulder can become irritated and inflamed causing a condition called bursitis.

So as you can see that a trapped nerve pain cause in the shoulder is different from a muscle, tendon, bursa source of pain the shoulder. So it is important to know what in your body is sending the pain signals. Is it the nerve from your neck going into the shoulder or is it from the other soft tissues locally around the shoulder joint.

Shoulder Pain Treatment

Now you probably want to know what to do to solve your shoulder pain and gets some relief from the pain.

Trapped Nerve Pain Treatment

For a trapped nerve shoulder pain you can try reading the trapped nerve pain relief article mentioned already above. It goes into self-help options. You can read more about nerve pain medications protocol prescribed by a general practitioner or a surgeon.

Rotator Cuff Injury Treatment

To treat the rotator cuff injury source of pain depends on what is causing the pain from the three options mentioned above. Your family doctor or orthopaedic surgeon will likely start you off on anti-inlammatory medicines. A surgeon might perform a cortisone injection into the painful area.

You might be referred for physiotherpy of the shoulder.

There is a physiotherapist and osteopath, Tim Allardyce, who has a book on shoulder pain relief exercises. You can also see some of the shoulder pain relief exercise videos.

I hope that you can understand now that a shoulder pain can come from a trapped nerve or from the muscles, tendons, ligaments, bursa and other soft tissues of the shoulder joint. It is important to get an opinion on the source of the shoulder pain first from a healthcare professional so you can figure out a plan of action to solve the pain.

Trapped Nerve in Shoulder?