Most of us have suffered from back pain at some point in our lives but the most commonly injured area is the lower back. Although severe upper back pain is less common, there is no doubting that it can be equally as painful and have a long-term, negative effect on the sufferer. A pain in the upper back is regarded as chronic if it lasts more than six weeks and often, people try and cope with this kind of pain for too long. This runs the risk of causing more damage.

Common causes of severe upper back pain are

 

• Whiplash traumas
• Poor posture
• Wear and tear
• Genetic conditions

 

Whiplash injuries have a habit of revealing themselves long after the original trauma has taken place. Often, muscles supporting damaged areas become weaker and any nerve or spine problems are revealed, and pain and discomfort are experienced.

 

Poor posture is something that nearly all of us must check from time to time. Jobs that require sitting for long periods of the day are often the main culprit. It becomes very easy to slump the shoulders forward while working, even slouching while watching television can cause damage. Severe upper back pain caused by poor posture is something that happens over a longer period.

 

Wear and tear normally comes from repetitive strain. A job where the sufferer is constantly standing in the same position or is making the same movements over a long period of time can cause a breakdown of the supporting muscles and tissue. This often leads to severe pain.

 

There are genetic conditions which you may be predisposed to can certainly lead to severe upper back pain. Conditions such as arthritis are often the main cause and genetic issues may also complicate things.

 

What can you do?

 

It’s important to seek medical advice and to discover the source of any pain. The doctor will confirm the types of treatments available which can provide relief along with a pain management plan but also, in some cases, there may be a reversal of the damage. A structured pain management plan can seem like a life changer to some patients as coping with severe pain on a daily basis can affect life considerably. In many cases, people suffer from severe depression.

 

Other procedures available include:

 

• Image-guided spinal injections to directly target the pain center
• The use of a patient’s own stem cells to regenerate growth and repair damage
• Implanting spinal cord simulators, often used when surgery has been less successful

 

These procedures have all been proven to offer not just pain relief but, in some cases, a reversal of the original damage. This is quite amazing. Much of the time, these are minimally invasive treatments and administered with just a local anesthetic.

 

Severe upper back pain can often be avoided by seeking treatment as early as is possible. Early physical therapy can offer relief and often, a solution especially when back pain is caused by bad posture or movement. Some of these solutions listed here will provide relief from pain but you do need to obtain a medical diagnosis first.