We have had a fair few interesting cases recently and in the last blog post we looked at a recent successful treatment of a patient with plantar fasciitis. So I thought that it could be good to continue with the case studies at present rather than returning to discussing specific pathologies as we were doing last year.

In this blog post I thought we could look at the case of a recent patient who was suffering for a long period of time with what is an extremely common condition: neck and shoulder pain.

The patient Mrs B.: a female in her mid 40s had been suffering for neck, upper back and shoulder pain for many years. She had been to have massages in the past and although these had been very pleasant they had unfortunately not been able to solve her problems. The patient worked long hours, had a long drive to work and back and her pain would come on mainly in the evening and would give her an ache in the neck and upper back areas. She had no other symptoms and was in general a fit and active person. 

A physical assessment of the patient showed a forward neck posture, an enlarged T1/2 region, protracted shoulders and generally poor posture. She had full neck range of motion but experienced pain at the end of range of most movements. On palpation she was very tender in the spinal muscles from T1-T6 and in her upper trapezius muscles bilaterally. Based on the above information, it seemed reasonable to diagnose a postural irritation of the neck and shoulder muscles with over activity in her upper trapezius and paraspinal muscles.

Treatment for Mrs B. involved deep tissue massage targeted at specific muscle groups and areas that were causing her discomfort in order to desensitise and relieve these areas and some spinal manipulation of her upper thoracic region. This was combined with a series of exercises, stretches and some postural work aimed at enabling her to improve and manage her condition herself.

After 1 session the patient reported a great improvement overall, with the pain having become more localised to a few specific areas now and also being less intense.  During the second session we really concentrated on the specific areas that were still causing her discomfort and also focused on mobilising specific vertebral segments that felt stiff during palpation. Furthermore her exercises were adjusted slightly after feedback from the patient. All of this worked so well, that the patient became completely pain free and did not need any further sessions!

To me this case study highlights the real importance of seeking help if you are in pain. This sounds like common sense and I am sure some people reading this are thinking that everyone would look for help if they are in pain. However in my experience many people are exactly like Mrs B. - they are in pain and they don't want to bother anyone, they figure that it will eventually go away and they also think that it probably can't be helped. In my opinion it would be so much better and easier if people would seek help earlier in the process, rather than waiting for their pain to become chronic and long standing.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading this article about our home visit physiotherapy service. For anyone reading this blog who hasn't come across our site before: we are a home visit physiotherapy service, based in Lichfield but serving anywhere within a 25 minute drive including areas such as Sutton Coldfield, Tamworth, Cannock, Burton and Rugeley. We offer a wide range of services including paediatric physiotherapy, post-operative rehabilitation, neurological physiotherapy and neck and back pain relief. If you need further information or would like to book an appointment we can be contacted on 0788 428 1623 or via enquiries@threespiresphysiotherapy.co.uk