The condition is more common in men than women, and typically affects the neck or lower back.Īside from natural wear and tear from aging, injuries to the spine, spinal tumors, rheumatoid arthritis, and certain bone diseases can cause spinal stenosis.Įvidence of spinal stenosis can be seen on an MRI or CT scan. This can create pressure on your spinal cord or on nerves that go from your spinal cord to your muscles. This is called spinal stenosis, and it can create compression, crowding, or pinching of the spinal column. Spinal injuries, overgrowth of the bones in your spine, injury, and herniated discs can cause the spinal canal-the space in your spine that protects your spinal cord-to narrow. Injuries like this can occur anywhere in the back, and one of the symptoms is burning or stinging pain. In these situations, the fibers of your muscles can stretch or tear. Muscle strain can occur when you overuse or injure your muscles-due to heavy lifting, exercise or sports, sudden or repeated movements, or other movements. If you think you may have one, talk to your doctor immediately. If the herniated disc is located in the upper half of your spine, you may experience this burning pain in your upper back, or between your shoulder blades.Ī herniated disc can lead to permanent nerve damage. This can occur anywhere along the spine, and can cause a burning pain if the disc begins pressing on one of the spinal nerves.
Herniated or bulging discĪ herniated disc (also known as a bulging, slipped, or ruptured disc) refers to a condition where one of the soft, rubbery discs between the spinal bones pushes through a crack in the exterior casing. If you’re feeling stressed out, or if you’re experiencing burning pain in the upper back, talk to your doctor about healthy ways to reduce stress in your life. Repeated bouts of stress, and the body strain that comes with them, can cause musculoskeletal issues. Stress can be a cause of tension headaches, which often include pain in the neck, shoulders, and upper back. The tension from stress can manifest as burning pain, especially in the upper back, neck, and shoulders, as this is where people tend to hunch up.
It can also be helpful to set occasional alarms on your phone or calendar as reminders to stand up, walk around for a few minutes, or even just as a reminder to sit up tall. For those working at home, dining chairs are not meant for long periods of sitting, and may not support the low back. If you are confined to a chair for long bouts for work, make sure the chair has adequate support. These postural changes can cause inflammation and lead to burning and tingling upper back and shoulder pain. This can also put pressure on ligaments and spinal discs. Certain muscles may become weaker, while others are stretched and put under pressure. Prolonged periods of poor posture, such as hunching over a desk, can cause your spine to undergo real structural changes. These symptoms can impact the upper back and shoulder blades, or other systems of the body.Įxperiencing a burning sensation in your upper back? Chat with a doctor through K Health. It can be felt in the neck, to the left and right of the spine, or radiating in towards the chest and down the arms.ĭepending on the cause of the burning sensation, this pain can be accompanied by other symptoms. Many people experience this sensation in their upper back or shoulder blades. It can be uncomfortable and distracting, and can make mobility a challenge. Symptomsīurning pain is often described as a stinging or prickling sensation-similar to the pins-and-needles feeling you get when your foot falls asleep, or the “zinging” sensation of an electric shock. I’ll also tell you what your next steps should be if you are experiencing burning pain in these areas, including when you should seek medical help, how you’ll be diagnosed, and what your treatment may look like, depending on what the root cause of your pain is determined to be. In this article, I’ll talk about some of the symptoms of burning pain in this area, and some possible causes, including poor posture, arthritis, spinal tumors and more.
If you’re experiencing burning pain in your upper back or between your shoulder blades, you may be wondering just that: What’s causing this burning? And do I need to worry? There are many different types of pain-shooting, dull, aching, stabbing, and more.īurning pain can be not just uncomfortable, but worry-inducing, leaving you wondering what’s causing the stinging, prickling sensations.