Mid and Upper Back Pain

Mid back pain can come from many causes

Mid Back Pain usually occurs between the shoulder blades, posterior ribs or within the 12 vertebrae that make up the mid-back (thoracic spine). Most people who experience mid back pain or pain between the shoulder blades feel it when they twist, move in certain directions, or take a deep breath.

A common cause of mid back pain is a rib injury or subluxation. Anatomically speaking, the thoracic spine (middle back) attaches to the ribs. If a blunt force affects the ribs, even if the force occurred in the front part of the body, a mid back symptom may be felt because the muscles between the ribs were irritated or the ribs were subluxed at the spinal level. This can also occur very easily during a cough or a sneeze! The muscles extend from the front part of the ribs to the area that attaches to the spine of the middle back so an uncontrolled cough or sneeze can cause a great deal of middle back discomfort. Upon examination it is very common to find a lower back misalignment, or in some cases, a lower neck misalignment that has helped cause the mid back pain. Remember, the spine works as a unit. In the majority of cases, patients will complain about neck or lower back pain specifically. However, mid back pain is a reality for some patients, and that situation can be addressed using chiropractic treatment.

Costochondritis occurs when the cartilage, the costosternal joint, that connects the ribs to the breastbone become inflamed. This inflammation leads to sharp pain in the costosternal joint. This pain can resemble symptoms of a heart attack. The difference between symptoms of a heart attack and symptoms of costochondritis is that heart attack pain is more widespread while costochondritis is localized around the breastbone. Symptoms of Costochondritis include:

Pain in the area the ribs attach to the breastbone
Pain when breathing deeply, coughing, and sneezing
Difficulty breathing
Sharp, dull pain
Costochondritis Treatment and Mid Back Pain Treatment consist of Chiropractic adjustments to address misaligned vertebrae and ribs and Physiotherapy to eliminate soft tissue swelling.