Pain in the shoulder blade does not necessarily come from the shoulder thus it is vital that pain in the shoulder blade should be differentiated from pain in the shoulder. Shoulder is the most flexible and mobile joint in the body but its stability depends so much on its surrounding tissues. These soft tissues are what we call the rotator cuff which is made of four muscles and there is also a bursa that serves as sliding system between the adjacent bone and rotator cuff. This disorder on the bursa and rotator cuff is what causes shoulder pain.
The most common shoulder disorder in the Rotator cuff is tendonitis. It is the inflammation of the tendons which made up the rotator cuff. Another condition that also cause shoulder pain is Subacromial bursitis which is an inflammation of the bursa. Both of these conditions happen when there is impingement of soft tissues and both presents the same symptoms.
Symptoms characterized with pain in the shoulder when lifting your arm. As the conditions gets worst pain becomes severe and persistent and usually gets worst at night time. If tendonitis or bursitis is left untreated then tearing of rotator cuff may happen.
Another condition of rotator cuff that causes weakness and pain in the shoulder is Calcific tendonitis. The pain is cause by the calcium deposits that is in the tendons of the rotator cuff. These deposits can cause symptoms that can be severe. Symptoms often include severe pain, shoulder is red, shoulder is warm and tender to touch and fever. These symptoms might last for two weeks. When rotator cuff starts to heal and repair, you may still feel pain and movement is restricted.
Problems in the acromioclavicular joint or the neck may cause pain in the shoulder or shoulder blade. It usually signifies nerve root irritation in the neck area. Patients often experience stiff neck and presence of pain as well as headaches.
Pain felt at the tip of the shoulder may be cause from an abdominal problem like gall bladder disease or pulmonary embolism which is a lung condition. That is why patients who are suffering from shoulder or pain in the shoulder blade must give a detail history of the pain felt and any injury or trauma that occurs. A full examination of the neck as well as the shoulder should be done by your doctor to identify the cause of the problem.
Treatments for shoulder or shoulder blade pain depends on its cause thus it is important that your doctor can identify first the real cause of the pain under shoulder blade. Several tests and imaging studies will have to be perform to identify the problem.