Neck pain is a condition where a person experiences pain anywhere from the bottom of the head to the top of the shoulders.
The pain could be localized, or spread, or even “shoot” into the upper back, shoulders and arms. The pain can be minimal – conditions such as aches, dull pain, or stiffness – or debilitating, causing severe loss of movement in the head and neck. Like most musculoskeletal conditions, there may be many causes of pain.
Often, neck pain is caused from overuse or repetitive positional stress on the muscles, ligaments, tendons and joints of the neck.
Neck Pain can be caused by many factors, including:
- Sleeping. Sleeping face down with your neck twisted to one side all night, or positioned oddly with a pillow can have you waking up stiff, sore, and unable to use the full range of your neck.
- Your Computer. Long hours at the computer with your head stretched forward can cause neck pain. Poor posture at the computer desk is a very common cause of neck and back pain.
- Accidents. Motor vehicle accidents, slips, and falls can all put severe strain on your neck, causing discomfort that gets worse over time.
- Poor posture. Years of bad posture can lead to neck pain, which often starts as dull aches, and grows worse over time.
- Age. As you age, your body becomes more susceptible to damage, and you can more easily injure your neck.
More serious conditions also exist which can cause neck pain such as infections, tumors, spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal), herniated discs, spinal degeneration, bone spurs and other conditions.