Cervical Pain Treatment in India
Cervical radiculopathy or pinched nerve in the neck is a common problem. Irritation or compression of the nerves coming out of the spine can cause severe pain travelling (radiating) to the shoulders and arms. The arm pain is often more severe although the root of the problem lies in the neck. This pain can be associated with tingling, numbness, weakness in the arm and hand.

To understand a bit more about these pains it is essential to have an understanding of the anatomy of the neck. The neck or the cervical region consists of seven bones (vertebrae) stacked one above the other. There are labelled as C1-C7, where C stands for cervical and 1-7 are the numbers to identify the level being referring to. These vertebrae are separated from one another by discs which are like cushions allowing the spine to move freely.

Each vertebra encloses a hollow space which lines up with the space of the vertebrae above and below, running along the entire length of the spine. This hollow space is called the spinal canal and houses the spinal cord which is a thick bundle of nerves connected to the brain. Between every two vertebrae there are openings on the sides called the foramina. A pair of spinal nerves (one on each side) exit through these foramina and supply a specific part of the body for example the nerves coming out of the neck would go to the arm and hands. When these nerves are irritated, either inside the spine or as they come out of the spine, it leads to the pain being felt in the area supplied by the nerve and this explains when we get arm pain whereas the actual problem lies in the neck.

CAUSES
The main causes of pressure or irritation of the nerves in the neck include

Disc problems such as bulging of discs can press on nearby nerves
Age related wear and tear/degeneration. This can cause narrowing (stenosis) of the openings between the vertebrae and pressure on the nerves as they exit the spine
Instability of the neck. Loss of normal spinal alignment can cause compression of nerves
Other causes. Less common causes include infection, tumours and fractures
Cervical radiculopathy is seen more commonly in middle-aged people and injury, poor posture can further contribute to this. In younger age groups this problem is majorly due to ruptured disc or injuries.

SYMPTOMS
Pain from a pinched nerve may be felt in both the arm and the neck or may be limited to just the neck or arm. Although the root of the problem lies in the spine, the symptoms may be felt in the area where the nerve that is irritated travels such as the shoulder, the arm, or the hand. By looking at where the symptoms are, the pain specialist can usually tell which nerve is involved. Symptoms include:

Burning, sharp, squeezing, aching or electric shock like pain
Tingling or pins and needles sensation in the arm or hand
Numbness or loss of feeling in arm or hand
Shoulder, arm or hand weakness
Increased pain travelling down the arm with neck movements such as looking up towards the ceiling (extension) or on turning the head