Mid back pain is not as common as lower back pain, but mid back pain may be worse when it does occur. Affecting the thoracic area of the back, mid back pain is more likely to be agonizing and intolerable than is lower back pain.

Mid Back Pain Location

Mid back pain is more technically termed thoracic back pain.

Your back consists of 30 small bones called vertebrae. These bones are stacked on top of each other, and connected by ligaments, tendons, and muscles. Your stack of connected vertebrae is divided into four regions. From the base of your skull down to your pelvis, these four regions are:

1. Cervical vertebrae – the top 7
2. Thoracic vertebrae – the next 12
3. Lumbar vertebrae – 5 more
4. Sacrum and coccyx – 6 fused bones at the spine’s base

Mid back pain occurs in the second region – the thoracic vertebrae.

Mid Back Pain Causes

Mid back pain is most likely to be caused by one or more of these:

1. injury or trauma to the muscles and ligaments of the thoracic area
2. scoliosis (curvature of the spine)
3. habitually poor posture
4. lack of adequate exercise
5. lack of muscle conditioning
6. repetitive torsal motions
7. too much sitting
8. past injuries that haven’t healed well
9. improper lifting techniques

Look briefly at those factors.

1. Mid back pain can be caused by injury or trauma to the thoracic area. Extensive injury can occur if the back is moved or twisted in the wrong way. If you are lifting something, and you do so with a sharp twist to the action, you may pull a muscle, or tear a ligament in the back. Mid back pain will result.

2. Mid back pain can result from curvature of the spine. Pain is not usually a symptom of scoliosis in adolescents, but scoliosis patients can experience a muscular type of mid back pain. Such mid back pain occurs because the muscles on the outside of the curve are working overtime trying to control the curve. When muscles are overworked, they hurt. Mid back pain results.

3. Habitually poor posture is another potential cause of mid back pain. Poor posture puts the nerves of your thoracic region under stress. They send a pain message to the brain, and you have mid back pain.

4. Mid back pain can occur when the back gets too little exercise. Adequate exercise is needed to keep the back strong. As with all of the body’s muscles, your back muscles need to be strong to support your back and avoid mid back pain.

5. Lack of muscle conditioning is a part of exercise. Remember to stretch your back slowly to warm up the muscles before undertaking an activity. Condition them further with exercise, and then cool down.

6. Repetitive torsal motions are fine as long as they are not excessive. When you begin doing the same motion with your back over and over, you are asking for mid back pain.

7. Those who spend many hours at a desk, in front of the computer, or sitting in front of the television set are likely to develop mid back pain. The back needs to move in order to maintain health.

8. Mid back pain is very likely to occur if you strain old back injuries that have not yet completely healed. Give them time.

9. Improper lifting techniques frequently cause injury and mid back pain. Learn proper lifting techniques, and use them consistently.

Mid Back Pain Treatment

If mid back pain is intense, your doctor may prescribe painkillers. You may visit a chiropractor for an adjustment. Or you may rest for a few days, alternating between heating pad application and an ice pack. It is important to follow your doctor’s advice, and treat the pain immediately. Ignoring mid back pain can lead to extensive and long-term problems such as nerve degeneration, joint, disk, and spine deterioration.

Mid back pain is most frequently caused by irritation or injury to muscles and ligaments supporting your thoracic spine. What is the thoracic spine? it’s the back of your chest, in layman’s terms. It involves your spine’s middle group of 12 vertebrae.

Mid Back Movement

The middle part of your back does not move as much as the upper and lower parts. Since these 12 vertebrae connect to your ribs, they spend most of their time simply keeping the back part of your ribs in place. This protects the spinal discs and joints in the mid back from the kind of wear experienced by those in the upper or lower back. Mid back pain usually does not originate in the vertebrae, discs, or joints.

Muscles and ligaments in the mid back work mainly to keep your spine straight. If you have mid back pain, it will usually be muscles and ligaments.

Mid Back Pain Causes

Mid back pain will usually be caused by one or more of these:

1. injury or irritation to mid back muscles and ligaments
2. scoliosis (curvature of the spine)
3. habitually poor posture
4. lack of adequate exercise
5. lack of muscle conditioning
6. repetitive motions of the chest/back area
7. prolonged sitting
8. unhealed past injuries
9. incorrect lifting techniques

Mid Back Pain Aggravation

Some people, knowing that mid back pain can be caused by a lack of exercise, go to the opposite extreme. They get overly zealous about exercise. One of the following may sound like you.

* VOLLEYBALL: You barely managed to get under the ball and pop it up. Your team cheers at your amazing stretch! You run backwards to take your serve, swing your arm back, and are suddenly caught by chest pain as well as mid back pain. You probably just suffered a painful rib joint pain (subluxation). You have back pain when inhaling. If you continue that volleyball game, you will aggravate mid back pain.

* COMPUTER: You sit in front of a computer throughout your workday. You try not to slouch, but you get weary and forget. Many times, you are stressed, trying to complete a project on time. At first, your mid back pain occurred at the end of the day. Now, it seems as though you have mid back pain all day long. If you don’t make ergonomic changes in your work station, or take time for exercise at various points in the day, you will aggravate mid back pain.

* POSTURE: Your mother always told you to stand up straight – and you used to do it. But after a recent injury, you began to unconsciously favor the area that was injured. It healed, but you continued to sit and walk with changed posture. It wasn’t long until you had mid back pain now and then. You changed your posture further, and now the mid back pain is constant. You aggravated it.

Mid Back Pain Treatment

Most common mid pack pain can be treated with simple, gentle exercise. Rest from normal, more strenuous activities, but do not stay in bed. Alternate hot and cold compresses to relieve the pain. You may also want to take an over-the-counter (OTC) medication such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or acetaminophen.

If your mid back pain persists for more than a few days, you should seek medical advice.

Usual Reasons for Need of Exercise for Middle Back Injury

Nagging stiffness in the mid back is often caused by limited movement between the joints of the spinal column. Such injuries can result from rushing through your warm-up before exercising. Another cause can be improper use of back muscles. Improper techniques in lifting, twisting, or sports activities such as rowing or throwing, can unduly stress joints, tendons, and muscles. Sudden damage can occur when a tendon, cartilage, or muscle is torn – gradual damage can occur from a build-up of small amounts of continual stress.

Stretching Exercise for Middle Back Injury

A good, general exercise for middle back injury is one that involves gentle stretching of the mid back. Stretching should be done at least twice a day, every day to heal the injury. Begin with at least one stretching exercise for middle back injury from these three.

1. Hip Rotations: Begin by lying on the floor on your back. Bend both knees, but keep your back and feet flat. While rotating your hips to the right, allow both legs to descend slowly, feeling a gentle stretch. At the point where you feel that stretch, hold the position for 10 seconds. Return slowly to your flat position. Repeat in the opposite direction. Do 10 repetitions.

2. Rump Lifts: Begin as above, by lying on the floor on your back, knees bent, back and feet flat. Slowly lift your rump into the air, allowing both feet to push downward as you do so. Hold the position for 10 seconds. Return slowly to your flat position. Do 10 repetitions.

3. Thigh Pulls: Again, begin by lying on the floor on your back, knees bent, back and feet flat. Placing a hand on the back of each thigh, pull both legs toward the chest, feeling a gentle stretch. At the point where you feel that stretch, hold the position for 10 seconds. Return slowly to your flat position. Do 10 repetitions.

Strengthening Exercise for Middle Back Injury

Back muscles need strengthening exercise on a regular basis, even when there is no injury or pain. However, strengthening exercise for middle back injury is even more important. We have described, elsewhere on this website, such strengthening exercises as “slippery heels”, “slippery lap”, “high heels”, “high legs”, “reverse high legs”, and “brake pedals”. We will not describe them here, but urge you to read those articles for details on strengthening exercise for middle back injury.

Prevention Exercise for Middle Back Injury

To prevent further trouble, you will want to use prevention exercise for middle back injury on an every-other-day basis. We recommend the “Alternate Superman” exercise, which you will find described elsewhere on this website.

Causes of Chest and Back Pain

1. Inflammation: The relationship between the chest and back pain can sometimes be linked to inflammation in one radiating to the other. For example, a lung inflammation can fill the entire chest cavity with pain. It can then radiate chest pain to the back.

2. Heart Attack: During a heart attack, patients may experience both chest and back pain. Most heart attacks involve chest pain, but many times, they can have both chest and back pain.

3. Spinal Injury: In the event of a spinal injury, nerves may not limit their pain message to the back. They may make you feel both chest and back pain. If you know you have a spinal injury, you will likely assume the chest pain is related. You should ask a doctor to be sure.

4. Broken Ribs: Those who have experienced broken, or even bruised ribs, can testify to the relation between chest and back pain felt until the ribs heal. At times, it may feel that the back also has been fractured.

5. Spinal Twisting: When the spine is out of alignment, or twisted even slightly, the vertebrae that connect to the ribs put pressure on the ribs. The result can be a combination of chest and back pain.

6. Stress: Many times, chest and back pain are a result of stress, of responding to stressors by tightening muscles of the upper body.

Treatment of Chest and Back Pain

The first treatment for chest and back pain is a visit to your health care provider. You yourself will probably be unable to link pain in the chest and back pain. You will not know the source of the pain. A physical exam can determine whether the cause is located in the chest or back.

Some conditions involving chest and back pain will call for medical intervention. Some will respond to a day or two of alternating cold and hot compresses. Some may need deep massage for temporary relief, a stress management plan for more long-term relief.

Under your doctor’s guidance, if there is no major complication, you will likely begin an exercise program to relieve both the chest and back pain.

Left side back pain is common, but it should not be ignored.

Left Side Back Pain Facts

The most common left side back pain is one resulting from a strained muscle. Our back muscles work constantly to keep the spinal column properly aligned. When we move quickly, or twist suddenly, the muscle must adjust to keep the spine from twisting too much. When we lift a heavy object, or try to carry something that is heavy, the muscles work to take strain off of the spine.

As a result, muscles can easily be pulled or strained. Your left side back pain is very likely related to some unaccustomed activity.

Types of Left Side Back Pain

There are four types of back pain in general, each of which may be descriptive of your left side back pain:

1. Acute back pain: This is sharp pain in the lower part of the back. It is common on the right side, but can also be felt as left side back pain.

2. Chronic back pain: This pain is duller, and can hinder everyday activities. It may be brought on by a past injury, or there may be long-lasting nerve damage. If your left side back pain is dull and persistent, it may fall into this category.

3. Neurological back pain: This is perhaps the most likely category for left side back pain. The term refers to pain that is caused by damage to the nerve tissue in the lower back. This kind of left side back pain is likely to be a burning, sharp pain that may begin at the lower part of the back and continue down the left side into the legs.

4. Nociceptive back pain: Left side back pain that is a deep, aching, gnawing, throbbing, or sore sensation is likely nociceptive. This pain usually occurs as the result of an injury. This type of left side back pain might occur after a vehicle accident or a fall. You also might experience this pain after back surgery, or if you have arthritis.

Treatment of Left Side Back Pain

If left side back pain is severe, you should see a physician immediately. X-rays may be needed to diagnose the pain and prescribe treatment for it. Among other things, expect your physician to prescribe back exercises to strengthen core muscles.