Upper back pain is one of the most common pains that people experience at one time or another in their lives. This is due to the fact that the back is exposed most of the time and that there are several muscles and bones involved that can be
injured. There are various reasons of upper back pain which you should know about, if you want to manage the pain properly.
Bones in the Upper Back
Upper back pain is felt between the neck’s bottom up to the lumbar spine’s top. The upper back contains the thoracic cage which is composed of the upper spine, in which there are twelve pairs of vertebrae, seven pairs of it are attached to the sternum. The last five ribs are called”false ribs” because they are not attached to the sternum but to the vertebrae only. This thoracic cage protects major organs of the body like the heart and the lungs. This comprises your upper back.
Muscles in the Upper Back
The upper back muscles are composed of the main muscle which is the trapezius which functions to hold everything in place. There are also small muscles called rhomboids which help in the maintenance of your good posture. The pectorals are found in your chest and have protective functions as well. All these muscles are responsible in coordinating movement.
Causes of Upper Back Pain
The most common cause of upper back pain is muscle irritation or injury. This can result from trauma like accidents, poor posture or overuse of the muscles. It is understandable that any injury to the thoracic cage will also cause upper back pain. Fracture of any of the bones in the upper vertebrae, compression of the vertebrae in osteoporosis will cause pain.
Treatment of the Pain
- Exercise is one good method to treat the pain. It could be coupled with physical therapy.
- Hot and cold compresses could be used. The cold compress will reduce inflammation while the warm compress will facilitate healing of muscle wounds.
- Drug medications like analgesics or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can be used to treat the pain if it becomes unbearable.
- Other alternative treatments include acupuncture or chiropractic. Acupuncture makes use of sterile needles punctured through certain focal points in the body to relieve pain, while chiropractic involves manual manipulation of the bones. Both of these should only be done by licensed acupuncturists and chiropractors.
Upper back pain can be effectively treated if the root cause is determined first. It is in treating the major causative agent that the pain subsides.
