Pain in the back below the left shoulder blade is a fairly common condition, especially among older adults.
Although the disease is not uncommon at a young age - sports injuries, incorrect posture, genetic factors can also cause it.
If your back pain is persistent and severe and doesn't go away over time, this is an important reason to contact your doctor.
Untimely assistance for this disease can lead to irreversible consequences and complications.
Anatomy of the chest:
Spine - Made up of vertebrae and spinal cord.It carries extremely important functions - supporting, shock absorbing, and protecting the spinal cord.
The left and right scapulae are bones on the limbs.This is a flat bone shaped like a triangle.
Both the outer and inner surfaces of the scapula have numerous depressions and pits - these are where ligaments and muscles attach.
It itself consists of a spongy substance and is particularly durable, which is explained by the constant load on the upper limb straps.
The clavicle is the bone that provides the joint between the shoulder blade and sternum.
The heart is an organ, essentially a bag of muscles, that ensures normal circulatory function in the body.
The lungs are paired organs located in the chest that are responsible for breathing and gas exchange.
The esophagus and stomach are digestive organs.
Ribs are flat bones that connect to the spine at the back and the sternum at the front.They have a protective effect on the chest.
Causes of back pain below left shoulder blade
As is clear from the list above, the cause of pain behind the shoulder blade or back can be hidden in diseases of the internal organs or the musculoskeletal system, and most of the time the patient is not even aware of it.
It has been noted that in some conditions the discomfort persists even when the person is at rest.However, this symptom does not always indicate the presence of complex back pathology.
The many pathological conditions that accompany this symptom include severe cardiac, gastrointestinal, and neurological disorders.
The main causes of pain in the back and behind the shoulder blades can be divided into the 5 main conditions most common among patients:
- Disorders of the musculoskeletal system.
- Acquired and inherited heart disease.
- Pathology of the bronchi, pleura, or lungs themselves.
- Acute or chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Disorders of the musculoskeletal system, including the scapula.
Musculoskeletal disorders
Diseases of the skeletal system are often accompanied by severe pain.
Back and shoulder blade pain and severe, unbearable pain can occur due to:
- Cervical osteochondrosis is a process of bone tissue destruction.The nerve root is strongly compressed, causing a dull and barely noticeable pain at first and, over time, a sharp, stabbing pain in the area under or next to the left shoulder blade and in the back.
- Thoracic osteochondrosis is a process that differs from cervical osteochondrosis only in the location of the lesion.This type of osteochondrosis affects not the cervical roots of the spinal nerves, but the thoracic spine.The pain may be accompanied by periodic dizziness, numbness in the upper limbs, and back pain that becomes more severe in the morning.
- Intercostal nerve damage is the most common cause of pain.The patient notices burning, unremitting pain on the side of the left shoulder blade or on the left side of the spine.If you don't provide the patient with appropriate assistance, the pain can become severe and severe.
- Malignant tumors or tumor metastases located in the scapula itself.Causes severe pain.
- Scapulocostal syndrome is characterized by persistent pain in the back that often radiates to the arms.
- osteomyelitis.
- Shoulder blade creaking - in this pathological condition, back pain is not very noticeable, and crepitus (crunching) is heard only with movement of the shoulder joint.
- Back and spine injuries and constant stress.
- Various types of pain during pregnancy, especially in the third trimester, are caused by the constant pressure placed on the back by the growing size of the fetus.
- Bone tuberculosis.
- Osteophytes and hernias.Depending on the location of the outbreak and the stage of the disease, they can also cause severe pain in the back of varying qualities - burning, sharp, aching - due to continued pressure on blood vessels and destruction of neurotrophic nerves.
- Shoulder arthritis involving the scapula is not only accompanied by severe back pain (worse at night) but also by limited joint mobility and muscle spasms.
- Psychosomatic factors.Stress and ongoing emotional tension can also cause severe, stabbing, episodic back pain.
Acquired and inherited heart disease
The left scapula and interscapular area may trouble patients due to heart disease.The following table shows the causes of pain and their nature.
| vascular proliferation | Severe interruption of blood circulation in the heart | Severe pain in the back, radiating to the left scapula, interscapular area, mandible, and left arm.These symptoms are often accompanied by shortness of breath, so the patient begins to panic out of fear of death. |
| aortic aneurysm | Anatomy of the Thoracic Aorta Wall | Chest pain moving posteriorly - to the left shoulder blade area, back or between shoulder blades and gradually descending into the lower back. |
| Endocarditis, myocarditis, pericarditis | Inflammation caused by bacteria, viruses, or parasites | Pain syndromes worsen with disease. |
| heart attack | myocardial necrosis | This lesion can radiate not only to the left shoulder blade and back, but also to the left arm, neck, and abdomen.The intensity of the pain is very high. |
| Angina pectoris | chest pain and discomfort | The most obvious pain syndromes may not be observed.The patient complained of stinging and burning sensations in the left shoulder blade area or left side of the back. |
Diseases of the bronchi, pleura, or lungs themselves
Usually, pain in the left shoulder blade is caused by pathological processes occurring in the lungs.These diseases are primarily of viral or bacterial etiology.
Some of them are described below:
Pneumonia – The patient experiences pain when coughing, sneezing and as it progresses, even when breathing in.Sufferers often assume forced positions - lying down with their heads raised, or simply lying on their sides.
For pneumonia, scapular region and back pain are not the most important clinical symptoms.Such patients will present with a low fever - 37 - 38°C, shortness of breath, first dryness, then phlegm, and cough.
In particularly severe cases, blood and pus may be present in the discharge from the lungs.
Bronchitis is especially associated with frequent barking coughs.As a result, pain in the left shoulder blade or back area may occur.
Pleurisy - most commonly due to this pathology, a pain syndrome occurs on the left shoulder blade and in the interscapular area of the back.
The pain in the back and shoulder blades is dull and mild at first, but becomes more severe as the process progresses.
With this disease, early diagnosis is important - an X-ray of the chest.
In the absence of lesions in the lungs, pleura and bronchi, patients are urgently advised to consult a cardiologist to rule out myocardial infarction.
Tuberculosis of chest and bronchial lymph nodes
This pathology may be accompanied by posterior pain, especially in the terminal stages.
Acute or chronic gastrointestinal disease
Usually, pain in the left shoulder blade, back or interscapular area is an important clinical symptom of digestive system diseases.It is important to know what conditions may accompany left shoulder blade pain.
gastric ulcer perforation
A perforated ulcer of the stomach, or more precisely, a perforation in the upper part of the stomach, may be accompanied by severe pain in the area of the left shoulder blade, in addition to a "dagger-like" stabbing pain in the abdomen, fever, vomiting.
acute pancreatitis
Persistent pain in the upper abdomen, digestive disorders - vomiting, diarrhea, accompanied by pain in the left shoulder blade of the waist.
spleen injury or rupture
Spleen damage is often invisible because of the atypical symptoms that occur when the organ is damaged.Symptoms may be hidden, but there is no severe pain.
When the splenic parenchyma ruptures, a hematoma will form in the subcapsular space, accompanied by dull pain that worsens as the hematoma grows below the left scapula and to the left of the posterior ribs.
attention!The above conditions require immediate diagnosis and in some cases surgical intervention.
Disorders of the musculoskeletal system, including scapula
In this case, any pathological process involving the shoulder joint will be accompanied by pain under the left shoulder blade that worsens with movement of the arm.
Severe pain may cause:
- Sudden movements.
- Injuries - Broken bones, dislocated shoulder blades.The nature of pain can be acute or dull.Painkillers are needed to relieve pain.
- Tuberculosis of the Scapula - Pain that worsens as the disease progresses.
- Gunshot wound to shoulder blade.Even after the integrity of the shoulder blade is restored, pain may persist for a long time.
- Bursitis is inflammation of the surface of the shoulder joint.
Diagnosis of diseases associated with pain in the left scapula
If you complain of pain in the left shoulder blade, it is very necessary to consult a doctor in time to make a diagnosis and take the correct treatment.
In order to make an accurate diagnosis, the following research methods are required:
- Computed tomography.
- Depending on the location of the pathological process, X-rays have different projections.Additionally, if you have lung disease, a chest X-ray will be needed to rule out pleurisy, tuberculosis, and pneumonia.
- MRI - its layer-by-layer images will allow you to study the ongoing pathological process more thoroughly.The outcome of treatment depends largely on its outcome.
- To rule out a heart attack, doctors perform electrocardiograms, echocardiograms, ultrasounds of the heart, and blood tests to check for heart attack markers in the blood.
- A visceral ultrasound will help confirm or rule out solid organ disease that may be causing pain in the left shoulder blade and back area.
- General and biochemical blood tests, measuring pulse, pressure.
Basic rules of treatment
If pain in the left shoulder blade area is causing significant difficulty breathing, this is an important reason to consult a therapist.
Self-medication will only make the condition worse.
It is important to diagnose the cause of the pain and determine the source of the pain.If diagnosed correctly and treated adequately, episodes of pain will stop.
When self-medicating, recurrent pain syndromes often occur, which can disrupt the patient's quality of life.
The drug should be taken only under the supervision of a specialist; in addition, the patient is prescribed a treatment plan and diet appropriate to the diagnosis.