Back ألم الرقبة Arabic Cervicàlgia Catalan Αυχενικό σύνδρομο Greek Cervicalgia Spanish Lepoko min Basque گردن درد Persian Niskakipu Finnish Cervicalgie French 頚部痛 Japanese 목 통증 Korean
| Neck pain | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Cervicalgia |
 | |
| Illustration of a person with neck pain | |
| Specialty | Neurosurgery |
Neck pain, also known as cervicalgia, is a common problem, with two-thirds of the population having neck pain at some point in their lives.[1]
Since there is not a universally accepted classification for neck pain, it is difficult to study the different neck pain types. While neck pain is the second most common cause of disability and cost $100 billion,[2] the NIH budgets only $10 million to the study of neck pain.[3]
One of the most common neck pains is between the neck and the shoulder. This is technically over the supraspinatus muscle and not in the neck, but it is still called “neck” pain. The cause of this shoulder/neck pain is thought to be due to sleeping with the arm overhead at night in a position causing impingement of the rotator cuff tendon in the shoulder, which is attached to the supraspinatus muscle.[4] This can be simply corrected by sleeping with the arm down next to the body and maintained under a long nightgown.[5] Nightly rotator cuff impingement may lead to an asymptomatic shoulder impingement[6] which explains why over 100 years of research has failed to identify a lesion in the cervical spine that causes this common shoulder/neck pain.
Neck pain, although felt in the neck, can be caused by numerous other spinal problems. Neck pain may arise due to muscular tightness in both the neck and upper back, or pinching of the nerves emanating from the cervical vertebrae. Joint disruption in the neck creates pain, as does joint disruption in the upper back.
The head is supported by the lower neck and upper back, and it is these areas that commonly cause neck pain. The top three joints in the neck allow for most movement of the neck and head. The lower joints in the neck and those of the upper back create a supportive structure for the head to sit on. If this support system is affected adversely, then the muscles in the area will tighten, leading to neck pain.
Neck pain affects about 5% of the global population as of 2010.[7]
- ^ Binder AI (March 2007). "Cervical spondylosis and neck pain". BMJ. 334 (7592): 527–31. doi:10.1136/bmj.39127.608299.80. PMC 1819511. PMID 17347239.
- ^ Dieleman, Joseph L.; Cao, Jackie; Chapin, Abby; Chen, Carina; Li, Zhiyin; Liu, Angela; Horst, Cody; Kaldjian, Alexander; Matyasz, Taylor; Scott, Kirstin Woody; Bui, Anthony L.; Campbell, Madeline; Duber, Herbert C.; Dunn, Abe C.; Flaxman, Abraham D. (2020-03-03). "US Health Care Spending by Payer and Health Condition, 1996-2016". JAMA. 323 (9): 863–884. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.0734. ISSN 1538-3598. PMC 7054840. PMID 32125402.
- ^ Nguyen, Mytien; Gonzalez, Luis; Newman, Ashley; Cannon, Ashley; Zarebski, Shenika A.; Chaudhry, Sarwat I.; Pomahac, Bohdan; Boatright, Dowin; Dardik, Alan (2023-07-01). "Rates of National Institutes of Health Funding for Surgeon-Scientists, 1995-2020". JAMA Surgery. 158 (7): 756–764. doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2023.1571. ISSN 2168-6262. PMC 10193263. PMID 37195709.
- ^ Gorski, Jerrold M.; Schwartz, Lawrence H. (April 2003). "Shoulder impingement presenting as neck pain". The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. American Volume. 85 (4): 635–638. doi:10.2106/00004623-200304000-00008. ISSN 0021-9355. PMID 12672838.
- ^ Gorski, Jerrold (2018-11-01). "Letter to the Editor: Sleep Quality in Patients With Rotator Cuff Disease". The Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. 26 (21): e465 – e466. doi:10.5435/JAAOS-D-18-00164. ISSN 1940-5480. PMID 30180096.
- ^ Torchia, Michael T.; Sefko, Julianne A.; Steger-May, Karen; Teefey, Sharlene A.; Middleton, William D.; Keener, Jay D. (July 2023). "Evaluation of survivorship of asymptomatic degenerative rotator cuff tears in patients 65 years and younger: a prospective analysis with long-term follow-up". Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery. 32 (7): 1432–1444. doi:10.1016/j.jse.2023.03.008. ISSN 1532-6500. PMID 37024038.
- ^ March L, Smith EU, Hoy DG, Cross MJ, Sanchez-Riera L, Blyth F, et al. (June 2014). "Burden of disability due to musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders". Best Practice & Research. Clinical Rheumatology. 28 (3): 353–66. doi:10.1016/j.berh.2014.08.002. PMID 25481420.