Neck pain affects individuals of all ages and ranges from mild, short-term discomfort to severe, long-lasting issues. The pain can come from structures within the neck, such as vertebrae, ligaments, and muscles. Damage or stress to any of these parts can cause pain.
What Is Neck Pain?
Neck pain is discomfort in the cervical spine. It may be acute, sudden, and short-lived, or chronic, lasting several months or more. For some, the pain is a dull ache, and for others, sharp pain that may radiate to the shoulders, arms, or hands. This pain may be accompanied by stiffness, headaches, tenderness, or tingling and numbness in the arms or hands. The symptoms and their severity can help identify the cause.
What Causes It?
Neck pain can result from mechanical problems, injuries, or medical conditions. Muscle strain or tension is a frequent cause of pain. Poor posture, such as hunching over a computer, overworks neck muscles and leads to a sore neck. Sleeping in awkward positions or reading in bed without proper support can also strain neck muscles.
Age-related changes also contribute to this type of pain. Osteoarthritis can cause cartilage between vertebrae to wear down, leading to bone spurs and joint pain. Degenerative disc disease reduces the discs’ ability to cushion vertebrae, potentially resulting in discomfort.
Injuries can be a cause of acute pain. Whiplash, often resulting from a rear-end car collision, involves rapid back-and-forth movement that injures the neck’s soft tissues. Traumatic injuries from falls or sports may cause more severe damage, such as vertebral fractures. Certain medical conditions also lead to neck pain. Herniated discs press on nerves and may cause radiating pain, numbness, or weakness. Spinal stenosis, the narrowing of the spinal canal, compresses the spinal cord and nerves.
How Is It Treated?
Neck pain treatment depends on the cause. For mild pain from muscle strain or poor posture, self-care includes ice therapy to reduce inflammation, followed by heat for muscle relief. If self-care does not relieve pain, non-surgical treatments may be advised. Physical therapy includes exercises to strengthen neck muscles, increase flexibility, and improve posture. Manual therapies such as massage therapy can help alleviate pain.
Other options for persistent pain include electrical stimulation, which uses low-voltage electrical currents for relief. Short-term use of a soft cervical collar can support the neck and limit movement. In cases involving nerve compression or severe inflammation, decompression near the nerve roots may be used to reduce inflammation and pain. Surgery may be an option when non-surgical measures do not relieve pain or when neurological symptoms are present. The surgical method depends on the specific anatomical issue.
Seek Professional Spine Care
Certain symptoms, such as severe pain, pain lasting several weeks, numbness, weakness, or radiating pain into the arms or legs, may require medical evaluation. A specialist may use a physical examination and imaging tests like X-rays, MRI, or CT scans to diagnose the cause of neck pain. If care at home isn’t alleviating pain, a consultation with a spine specialist can help you receive treatment tailored to your situation.
