Shoulder Pain Can Be One of the First Signs of Cervical Disk Disease

(Cervical Roots as Origin of Pain in the Neck or Scapular Regions
Spine, Volume 31 Number 17, August 1, 2006, pp E568-E573
Tanaka, Yasuhisa MD; Kokubun, Shoichi MD; Sato, Tetsuro MD; Ozawa, Hiroshi MD)

Tanaka and his fellow researchers found that “Pain in the neck or scapular region is one of the most frequent symptoms in
cervical radiculopathy, which is commonly caused by a degenerative process in the spine.” Neck or scapular pain usually precedes the radicular symptoms of arm-finger
pain, numbness, and motor weakness. “When the pain originates from an intervertebral disc or joint, it will not be relieved with surgery that simply decompresses the root without fusion.” When pain originates from a compressed nerve root, it may be perceived at a site referable to the root. The subjects of this study were 50 consecutive patients (42 males and 8 females) with radiculopathy who complained of neck or scapular pain as well as symptoms in an arm or fingers. Surgeries were indicated after ineffective conservative treatment for at least 4 months. [Important: this indicates that it is acceptable for patients with radiculopathy to undergo 4 months of conservative management / Chiropractic treatment prior to surgical referral.]

If you have some shoulder pain, do not disregard the possible seriousness of your problem. Most cases of shoulder pain come on during normal everyday activities. However, we frequently see cases of shoulder pain following motor vehicle accident.