Expert: Scott F. Gillman, DC, DACBSP - 10/25/2007

Question
I don't know what has happened to me, and cannot find anyone on the Internet with the same situation. ok, this is my story, i hope you can help. I hurt my neck while horsing around with a friend. the pain was pretty bad and it ran all the way down my left shoulder to my finger tips. I went to a chiropractor who adjusted me (2 days ago). My neck pain is gone, but now it has been replaced with a burning pain in upper back that i cannot find any sort of relief. it feels like someone has taken a lighter to the area in between my shoulder blades. the pain is much worse than the neck pain i was experiencing before the adjustment. and its gotten worse since last night. I iced on/off like he told me to. I just don't think this pain is right. the longer I sit the more it hurts. I work a desk job, so I am in pure agony since I have no sick time left and must come in every morning to sit in this chair for 9 hours.
Please, at least direct me in the right direction so I know what to do, where to go. I am afraid to go back to him. cause I'm already in so much pain, i don't think i ever want another adjustment!
thanks.

Answer
Marisol,

Go back to the chiropractor and tell him all of this!!!  You may have a disc herniation that is irritating a nerve from your neck.  You state your pain was pretty bad but now is gone, but that it is replaced by burning pain in your shoulder blade.  This is typical of a disc irritation from a disc bulge or herniation.   Have the DC examine you and test your arm/hand/finger strengths, reflexes, and skin sensation.   Carefully performed neck joint manipulation can help.  Depending on your situation, the DC may decide not to adjust your neck and instead do other things to reduce your pain.  If your pain persists, the medical route would be a cortisone injection into the shoulder blade muscle (e.g. your trapezius) or an epidural steroid injection near the root of the nerve in your neck.  Hopefully your DC can successfully treat you, but it is important that you tell him what happened and see if there's an easy way to fix it.  Some people simply get a muscular strain reaction to the neck joint manipulation.  If this is all you have, it should be easy to deal with using soft tissue therapy and heat application.  

'Hope this helps,

Dr. G