Causes of severe upper back pain can result in potentially debilitating problems that need to be managed in a timeous and adequate manner. The following are causes of upper back pain that need addressing:

  • Poor posture when sitting or standing.
  • Injury and/or overuse of the back leading to inflammation and strain or spasm of the muscles in the upper back. Not lifting heavy objects properly is one of the most common causes of this pathology.
  • Herniated or ruptured intervertebral disc resulting in irritated or compressed nerve roots.
  • Osteoarthritis (inflammation) of the cartilage covered areas of the bones in the spinal column. This can lead to degeneration of the cartilage resulting in bone-on-bone contact causing pain.
  • Fractures of the bones in the back.
  • Myofascial pain affecting the connective tissue of a muscle or group of muscles.

Since the body contains organs in the vicinity of the upper back, other possible causes such as infections, heart and/or lung pathologies, gallbladder or pancreas diseases, and in rare cases cancers need to be excluded.

There are different types of back pain, but upper back pain, in general, is a less common problem since this area of the back isn’t as flexible or as mobile as the lower back. Instead, the upper back works together with the ribcage to keep the back stable and protect the vital organs in this area.

Lately, though, upper back pain is becoming an increasingly problematic concern because of the increased performance of work requiring being in a sitting position for long periods of time, as well as jobs such as working on the computer for extended hours. These occupations cause most people to position themselves in ways that are not regarded as good postures and this causes tension and spasm in the muscles of the upper back. This can become quite a disabling condition if the back spasms are persistent and the pain can refer up to the neck and head causing headaches, as well as spreading to the lower back which can refer down to the legs.

Specialist Management

All-Star Pain Management and Regenerative Medicine makes use of the services of Maryland pain specialists who incorporate individualized therapies for patients depending on their unique circumstances and taking into consideration all relevant information from their medical history.

The center has a team of dedicated professionals who offer non-operative solutions for the pathologies and conditions already mentioned.

The therapies and procedures offered by the specialist pain management doctors include the following:

  • Management of acute or chronic pain with oral medications.
  • In-practice administration of medications into affected muscles or joints under ultrasound guidance.
  • Imaging-guided spinal injections where medications such as steroids and local anesthetics are injected into the problematic joints or around affected nerves.
  • Implanting spinal cord stimulators in patients where conservative and surgical intervention has been ineffective.
  • Collection of stem cells from patients and then administering these cells intravenously to stimulate the release of factors to reduce inflammation and improve healing and repair of any injured or damaged tissues.