We are Back, Muscle and Joint Specialists. We accept all patients, self paying and insured.

Thoracic Back Pain

The thoracic spine connects with the cervical spine above and the lumbar spine at the base of the spine and is attached to the rib cage. Thoracic back pain is usually due to muscular problems caused by poor posture or joint degeneration (wear and tear).

Causes of Thoracic Back Pain

Pain in the upper back and between the shoulder blades is usually caused by muscle tension or irritation causing muscle strain or spasms. Joints can have small tears in the cartilage and degenerative changes or a joint can sprain where the rib joins the vertebra.

Pain between the shoulder blades is the most common area to feel thoracic back pain. This could be caused by a traumatic accident or sports injury, slouching over a desk, carrying a heavy rucksack or an overuse injury. Occasionally this kind of pain can be of a serious origin so it is important to get an accurate diagnosis. These could be spinal stenosis, slipped discs, vertebral fracture, spinal infection or spinal tumours. In addition other causes of pain in this area can be referred pain from problems affecting the lung, the gut, the stomach, gall bladder and pancreas.

If you have Thoracic Back Pain you should be aware of the red flags indicating you should seek urgent medical advice. These include:

Pain that is increasing in severity and is constant
Unexplained weight loss
A history of cancer or other serious illness
A recent infection
Severe stiffness in the morning

A thorough examination and history will help to determine the cause of your thoracic back pain and how best to treat it. If necessary further investigations such as MRI or X-ray will help to find the underlying cause. In most cases this will be musculoskeletal and will respond well to manual therapy and injections if persistent.

We suggest you should book in with our osteopaths, chiropractor or physios for a thorough assessment and treatment. If necessary they will refer you to our Blackberry Clinic Pain Management Doctors or MSK doctors for interventional pain management treatments such as facet joint injections or prolotherapy.

Treatments for Thoracic Back Pain

As most thoracic back pain is musculoskeletal in origin it will respond well to manual therapy, postural re- education and ergonomic advice. If the pain is persistent and severe our Musculoskeletal Medicine and Pain Management doctors can perform pain relieving spinal injections. These include facet joint Injections, prolotherapy and epidurals.

Craniosacral Therapy

Acupuncture

Manual Therapy

Postural Rehabilitation

Pilates Based Rehabilitation

Medial Branch Block Diagnostic Injections

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Services for Thoracic Back Pain

Contact us to make a Thoracic Back Pain appointment

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Blackberry Clinic receives glowing feedback!

I had around 80% improvement after my first session with Shelley where she combined her mobilisation and manipulation techniques with soft tissue massage and some exercises to do at home. These were easy to follow and very helpful.

Patient of Shelley Terry

Milton Keynes Clinic

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