Pain under the left shoulder blade from the back is a fairly common pathology, especially in the older age group.
Although cases of the disease are not rare at a younger age - sports injuries, incorrect posture, hereditary factors can also cause the condition in question.
If your back pain is long-lasting and intense and does not go away over time, it is a serious reason to consult your doctor.
Untimely help for this disease can lead to irreversible consequences and complications.
Anatomy of the chest:
Spinal column - consists of vertebrae and spinal cord.It carries extremely important functions - support, shock absorption and protection of the spinal cord.
The scapula, both left and right, belongs to the bones of the upper limb girdle.This is a flat bone that is shaped like a triangle.
Both on the outer and inner surface, the scapula has a large number of depressions and depressions - these are the places of attachment of ligaments and muscles.
It itself consists of a spongy substance, which is particularly durable, which is explained by the constant loads of the belt of the upper limbs.
The clavicle is the bone that provides articulation between the scapula and the sternum.
The heart is an organ that is essentially a muscular bag that ensures the normal function of circulation in the body.
Lungs are paired organs located in the chest that are responsible for breathing and gas exchange.
The esophagus and stomach are organs for digestion.
Ribs are flat bones that are attached to the spine at the back and to the sternum at the front.They have a protective function for the chest.
Causes of pain under the left shoulder blade from the back
From the list above, it becomes clear that the causes of pain in the back of the scapula or on the back of the back can be hidden in diseases of the internal organs or the musculoskeletal system, which the patient is usually not even aware of.
It has been noted that with some pathologies, such discomfort can persist even while the person is resting.However, this symptom does not always indicate the presence of complex back pathology.
Among the numerous pathological conditions accompanied by such a symptom are serious heart, gastrointestinal and neurological diseases.
The main causes of pain in the back and behind the shoulder blades can be divided into the 5 most common pathologies in patients:
- Disorders of the musculoskeletal system.
- Acquired and hereditary heart diseases.
- Pathology of the bronchi, pleura or the lungs themselves.
- Acute or chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Diseases of the musculoskeletal system, including the scapula.
Musculoskeletal disorders
Bone system diseases are often accompanied by severe pain.
Painful and severe, unbearable pain in the back and shoulder blades can occur for the following reasons:
- Cervical osteochondrosis is a process of destruction of bone tissue.In him, strongly compressed nerve roots cause initially dull and barely noticeable, and eventually sharp and shooting pains under the left shoulder blade or in the area next to it, as well as in the back.
- Thoracic osteochondrosis is a process that differs from cervical osteochondrosis only in the localization of the lesion.In this osteochondrosis, the cervical roots of the spinal nerves will not be affected, but the thoracic ones.The pain may be accompanied by periodic dizziness, numbness of the upper extremities, back pain in the back becomes more intense in the morning.
- Damage to the intercostal nerves is the most common cause of pain.Patients notice a burning, unrelenting pain on the side of the left shoulder blade or to the left of the spine.If you do not provide the patient with proper help, the pain will become shooting and sharp.
- Malignant neoplasms or tumor metastases located on the scapula itself.It causes severe pain.
- Scapular rib syndrome is characterized by aching and excruciating pain in the back, which often spreads to the arm.
- Osteomyelitis.
- Scapular crunching - in this pathology, the pain is not very pronounced in the back, only crepitation (crunching) is heard when moving the shoulder joint.
- Injuries and constant stress on both back and spine.
- Pregnancy, especially in the later stages - pains of various kinds are explained by constant stress on the back due to the increase in the size of the fetus.
- Tuberculosis of bones.
- Osteophyte and hernia.Depending on the location of the outbreak and the stage of the disease, due to the constant compression of blood vessels, and therefore the disturbance of the nutrition of the nerves, they can also cause severe pain in the back of a different nature - burning, sharp, painful.
- Arthritis of the shoulder joint involving the scapula is accompanied not only by severe back pain, worse at night, but also by limited joint mobility and myospasm.
- Psychosomatic factors.Stress and constant emotional tension can also cause sharp, stabbing, paroxysmal back pain.
Acquired and hereditary heart diseases
The left scapula and interscapular region may bother patients due to cardiac disorders.The table below shows the causes of pain and their nature.
| Angiosis | Severe blood circulation disorder in the heart | Sharp pain in the back of the back radiating to the left shoulder blade, interscapular region, lower jaw, left arm.Often these symptoms are accompanied by shortness of breath, due to which the patient begins to panic due to the fear of death. |
| Aortic aneurysm | Dissection of the walls of the thoracic aorta | Chest pain moves back - in the area of the left shoulder blade, back or between the shoulder blades and gradually descends to the lower back. |
| Endocarditis, myocarditis, pericarditis | Inflammation of bacterial, viral or parasitic etiology | Pain syndrome that increases with the disease. |
| Heart attack | Heart muscle necrosis | This pathology 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 extremely high. |
| Angina pectoris | Pain and discomfort in the chest area | The most pronounced pain syndrome may not be noticed.Patients complain of tingling and burning in the area of the left shoulder blade or on the back on the left side. |
Pathologies of the bronchi themselves, pleura or lungs
Often, pain in the left shoulder blade is caused by pathological processes occurring in the lungs.These diseases are mostly of viral or bacterial etiology.
Some of them are described below:
Pneumonia – patients report pain when coughing, sneezing and when the process is advanced, even when inhaling.Patients often take a forced position - lying down, with the head raised or simply lying on the healthy side.
In pneumonia, pain in the scapular region and back is not the most important clinical sign.Such patients have a low temperature - from 37 - 38 ° C, difficulty breathing, first dry, then with discharge of sputum, cough.
In particularly advanced cases, blood and pus may be present in the lung discharge.
Bronchitis is especially accompanied by a frequent, barking cough.Pain in the area of the left scapula or in the back can arise precisely because of this.
Pleuritis - most often, due to this pathology, a pain syndrome develops in the left shoulder blade and back in the interscapular area.
The pain in the back and scapula is initially dull and subdued, but then as the process progresses it becomes more and more intense.
With this disease, early diagnosis is important - chest X-ray.
In the absence of pathologies in the lungs, pleura and bronchi, the patient is urgently advised to consult a cardiologist to rule out myocardial infarction.
Tuberculosis of thoracic and bronchial lymph nodes
This pathology can be accompanied by pain in the back, especially in the terminal stages.
Acute or chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
Often, pain in the area of the left scapula, back or interscapular space is an important clinical symptom for diseases of the digestive system.It is important to know which pathologies can be accompanied by pain in the left shoulder blade.
Perforated stomach ulcer
Perforated ulcer of the stomach, more precisely the upper parts, in addition to stabbing dagger in the abdomen, elevated temperature, vomiting, can also be accompanied by sharp pain in the area of the left shoulder blade.
Acute pancreatitis
Constant girdling pains in the epigastric region and disorders of the digestive system - vomiting, diarrhea, accompanied by pain in the left scapula of the back in the lumbar region.
Injury or rupture of the spleen
Spleen injuries are often invisible due to uncharacteristic signs that occur when the organ is damaged.Symptoms can be hidden, without severe pain.
When the spleen parenchyma ruptures in the subcapsular space, a hematoma is formed, which is accompanied by a dull pain that intensifies as the hematoma grows under the left shoulder blade and behind the back, on the left side of the ribs.
Attention!The conditions described above require urgent diagnosis and, in some cases, surgical intervention.
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system, including the scapula
In this case, any pathological process affecting the shoulder joint will be accompanied by pain under the left scapula, which increases with arm movement.
Sharp pain can cause:
- Sudden movements.
- Injuries - fractures, dislocations of the scapula.The nature of the pain can be either acute or dull.To relieve the pain, it is necessary to use painkillers.
- Tuberculosis of the scapula - pain increases as the disease progresses.
- Gunshot wounds to the shoulder blades.Pain may persist for a long time even after the integrity of the scapula has been restored.
- Bursitis is an inflammation of the surface of the shoulder joint.
Diagnosis of diseases accompanied by pain in the left scapula
If you complain of pain in the area of the left shoulder blade, it is necessary to consult a doctor in a timely manner in order to establish a diagnosis and prescribe the right treatment.
To make an accurate diagnosis, the following research methods are required:
- Computed tomography.
- X-ray in different projections depending on the location of the pathological process.Also, in the case of lung disease, a chest x-ray is needed to rule out pleurisy, tuberculosis, and pneumonia.
- MRI - its image layer by layer will allow you to study the ongoing pathological process in more detail.The outcome of the treatment will largely depend on his results.
- In order to exclude heart attacks, patients are prescribed ECG, echocardiogram, ultrasound of the heart, as well as blood analysis to check the presence of heart attack markers in the blood.
- Ultrasound of internal organs will help to confirm or rule out diseases of parenchymal organs that can represent pain in the area of the left scapula and back.
- General and biochemical blood test, measurement of pulse, pressure.
Basic rules of therapy
If the pain in the area of the left scapula noticeably makes breathing difficult, it is a serious reason to consult a therapist.
Self-medication can only worsen the condition.
It is important to diagnose the cause and determine the origin of the pain.In case of correct diagnosis and adequate treatment, the pain attack will be stopped.
In self-medication, there are often cases of repeated pain syndrome, which impairs the patient's quality of life.
Medicines should be taken only under the supervision of a specialist;in addition, patients are prescribed a regime and diet that corresponds to the diagnosis.