It is estimated that 1 in every 6 adults in England complains of some form of back pain. [1]
Research shows that in the City of London alone, around 16.2% of Londoners not only do complain of back pain, but they also live with it. [1]
Did you know that when these estimations were calculated, it was found that around 10 million people in the UK have back pain? [2]
When UK and London adults were interviewed, 55% of them reported that they have experienced back pain with its different forms at least once in the past 12 months (including lower back pain when breathing). [3]
And I bet none of them want to re-experience back pain ever again.
Learn now how Jazz helped Franco, Hayley, Jan, Michaela, Dr Christian NHS, WT police officer, Elizabeth Tiffany Edwards , lawyer M Taylor and Huw completely transformed their life by successfully rehabbing their chronic back pain.
In this article, let’s go through a very specific type of back pain that occurs or worsens when you breathe.
In this article, I will clarify for you and help you go through a very specific type of back pain that occurs or worsens when you breathe.
If you have dull, upper left back pain when breathing out, or sharp pain in back when breathing deeply, or you are wondering:
Why does my upper right back hurt when I breathe?
Read on to find out more about the possible causes.
What Causes Pain in The Back When Breathing?
Research shows that breathing is known to relieve pain, and improve symptoms. [4]
If you notice otherwise, here are some of the possible reasons why…
1. Referred pain
You might be feeling the upper left back pain when breathing.
But, is it really coming from your upper back?
In fact, this study shows [5] that organs like the heart, lungs, the digestive system can refer pain to your back.
And if these organs are inflamed or irritated, pain originating at them can worsen when you stretch and compress the tissues as you breathe in and out.
This can make you falsely think that the pain is coming from your back.
It is misleading!
This is why it requires close attention to the details of your symptoms from both –– You and your physiotherapist or a medical doctor trained in sports injuries.
2. Pressure-induced pain
When you breathe in and out, the pressure inside your chest and abdomen increases then decreases respectively.
This change in the pressure also changes your intra-thecal pressure, which is the pressure around your brain and spinal cord. [6]
If you have a problem in your back such as a herniated disc, a tumour or a cyst, deep breathing, coughing, sneezing and bearing down can provoke your symptoms in form of:
- Neck, and upper back pain with arm radiculopathy if the problem is at your neck
- Lower back pain with leg radiculopathy if the problem is at your back. [7],[6]
3. Musculoskeletal in Origin
Your body works as one unit.
When you breathe, you use more than just your lungs; there are bones, joints and muscles involved in this process, including:
– Bones and Joints:
- The ribs and the vertebrae
- Costosternal joint: the joints between your breastbone and ribs
- Costovertebral and costotransverse joints: Joints between your ribs and your spine [8]
– Muscles:
In addition to the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles, other muscles also participate in:
- Deep breathing: such as the neck muscles, serratus anterior and chest muscles
- Forced Exhalation: such as the abdominal muscles [8]
If any of the structures taking part in breathing – or those attached to them – are injured or inflamed, your breathing will be painful and may cause pain in back when breathing.
Here are some examples of the muscle and joints problems that cause sharp pain in back when breathing deeply :
- Rib fracture
- Costovertebral joint dysfunction
- Vertebral fractures
- Spine arthritis
- Scoliosis
- Strained or inflamed muscles [9],[12],[14]
How to Spot Your Problem
Depending on your symptoms research shows that your physician may require different investigations (e.g., lab work, sonography, X-ray, CT, MRI…etc.) to investigate different possible causes. [9]
Moreover, your clinician, physiotherapist, or rehab personal trainer in London may do some special tests, exercises or movements to examine your bones, joints and muscles in addition to your medical reports. These special tests help identify your injured structures before setting a rehabilitation plan. [9]
If you have Pain in back when breathing and you have your physician’s clearance to start your back pain exercise rehabilitation.
It is time to learn more about Jazz Alessi’s laser-sharp customised back pain rehabilitation plan that is designed based on your doctor or physio / osteopath report, your medical history and your very own-word complaints and back pain symptoms.
Where is Your Back Pain Coming From?
Determining the exact site of your pain helps your clinician understand more about its origin and decide the best way to deal with your pain.
But, did you know that you play an important role in diagnosis?
That is right…
It is important for you to indicate whether your breathing-related pain is located in your lower, middle or upper back.
Because each of these sites has its own implication.
Here is how:
Lower back pain when breathing
To find out the cause of your lower back pain when breathing, it is important to determine how your pain looks like.
If your pain:
- Is stabbing sharp pain in back when breathing
- Increases when you breathe in
- Increases when you move or twist your back
This can be an indication of tissue injury. [10]
This means you may have an injury such as a strained muscle, or a sprained ligament from lifting a heavy object or doing a sudden movement.
It can also be due to bone problem (e.g., lumbar, hip or sacroiliac dysfunction) or pelvic floor restriction.
Yet, does coughing increase your pain?
If you report lower back pain that increases with breathing and movement, it is also important to notice if it increases with:
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Laughing
- Bearing down
If this is the case, your pain may be caused by one of the following:
- A herniated disc: especially if associated with leg pain and a pinched nerve.
- A tumour on your spine: especially if associated with other neurological symptoms.
- A tumour or a cyst or in your chest: especially if associated with difficulty of breathing, wheezing and frequent coughing.
- Abscess: especially if accompanied by signs of infection such as fever. [9],[6]
Are you living in greater London?
For every cause of lower back pain when breathing, there will be a special plan of medical treatment set by your physician, followed by a customised back pain rehabilitation plan set by your rehabilitation personal trainer in London expert.
Make sure you learn what to expect in an effective Back pain rehabilitation plan so that you do not miss out on recovery!
Middle Back Pain When Breathing
You may think that having middle back pain when breathing is uncommon, until you experience symptoms of middle back pain in form of sharp pain while inhaling.
This pain may be felt in one of the following sites:
- Behind the ribs
- On your spine
- Between shoulder blades
- Under the shoulder blades
Why my right side of back hurts when I breathe?
Or
Why my left side of back hurts when I breathe?
Does it make a difference if the pain on the right or on the left?
Well, most commonly, the site of breathing-related middle back pain depends on where the pain is coming from.
Origins of Middle Back Pain when breathing
Middle back pain when breathing can originate at one of the following:
– Muscles and Bones
Your back muscles, and the intercostals (muscles between the ribs) can be the cause of your pain in case of injury, overuse or myositis (muscle inflammation) which occurs due to:
- Infection (e.g., the flu or COVID-19)
- autoimmune conditions
- drug side effects
- Injury (e.g., strain)
- Costo-chondritis: inflammation of the junctions between the breastbone and the ribs
- Overuse (e.g., in chronic and dry cough) [10],[11],[14]
– The Pleura
The pleura, which is a leather-like sheath surrounding the lung, is the only part of the lung that can feel pain.
For this reason, in cause of pleurisy (inflammation of the pleura), you may feel sharp stabbing pain in the area corresponding to the inflamed area (e.g., sharp pain in back when breathing)
Usually, pleuritic pain is localised and it occurs on one side, but in some cases, it may occur on both sides. [12]
– The Lung
Your lungs do not have pain receptor; this is why they do not feel pain.
However, some chest conditions that result in:
- Bronchospasm (tighter muscle around your bronchi / airways in your lungs)
- chest tightness and
- shortness of breath
May also make you feel like your back hurts due to the associated muscle spasm and tension.
Examples of these conditions are:
- Pulmonary embolism
- Asthma and COPD
- Chest infection (e.g., pneumonia) [13]
– The Kidneys
Why the right side of back hurts when I breathe?
And the left side of back hurts when I breathe?
The answer for both questions can lie in your kidneys.
If your kidneys are inflamed, irritated or having stones, they may give you pain all the time, and that pain may worsen with breathing.
This sharp pain in the flank can also radiate to your middle back, and it may be associated with fever, nausea, vomiting and pain or burning with urination. [9]
Upper back pain when breathing
You must be wondering, why does my upper back hurt when I breathe?
In addition to all the structures that can typically cause pain anywhere in your back (i.e., muscles, bones and discs), upper back pain when breathing can also be caused by:
– The Heart
If you have a problem in your heart, this can be the answer to your question: why does my upper back hurt when I breathe.
You may feel chest pain that radiates to your left shoulder, left shoulder blade, arm and jaw and it may worsen with:
- Deep breathing
- Heavy meals
- Exertion
- Stress [9]
– The Digestive System
You probably understand that the heart can cause pain in your left upper back.
But what you do not understand is: why does my upper right back hurt when I breathe?
Well, in addition to all the aforementioned causes, problems in your digestive system (e.g., gallstones, ulcers…) can cause:
- Upper and middle back pain (right or left) that worsens with breathing as stretching and compressing the tissues with breathing irritate inflamed tissues.
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Stomach upset
- Poor appetite [9]
In conditions like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), the pressure on the stomach during deep inhalation increases acid reflux. [9]
This pain can be acute and sharp or dull and aching based on the underlying cause.
Treatment to Cure Back Pain while Breathing
A pain-free breath does not occur overnight.
But, with the right treatment and rehabilitation plan, it can occur faster than you think.
Once you get your problem diagnosed by your physician, and you are cleared to join a back rehab programme.
You can join our customised back pain rehab programme that is designed specifically to solve your back pain and meet your health and fitness goals with London’s #1 Back Pain Rehab Specialist, Jazz Alessi.
Who is Jazz Alessi?
Jazz Alessi is a long-term expert back pain rehab specialist who combines laser sharp customised rehab exercises and nutrition (if is required) to help you tackle your very personal back problems, return to fitness in a safe way and lose weight if you require.
With his experience in rehabilitating elite athletes, Jazz uses evidence-based rehabilitation principles and his unique back pain rehab methodology to design your laser sharp customised rehabilitation programme in order to boost your recovery and maximise your health benefits and fitness goals.
- Keen to get started?
Contact Jazz directly and request a FREE CONSULTATION now!
REFERENCES
1. Arthritis research UK: Musculoskeletal Calculator
https://www.versusarthritis.org/media/13183/portsmouth-back-pain.pdf
2. The State of Musculoskeletal Health 2021
https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/data-and-statistics/the-state-of-musculoskeletal-health
3. Global Consumer Survey: Pain in the UK
https://www.statista.com/chart/25654/pain-prevalence-by-type-gcs/
4. Busch, Volker & Magerl, Walter & Kern, Uwe & Haas, Joachim & Hajak, Göran & Eichhammer, Peter. (2011). The Effect of Deep and Slow Breathing on Pain Perception, Autonomic Activity, and Mood Processing-An Experimental Study. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.). 13. 215-28. 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2011.01243.x. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51663018_The_Effect_of_Deep_and_Slow_Breathing_on_Pain_Perception_Autonomic_Activity_and_Mood_Processing-An_Experimental_Study
5. Allegri M, Montella S, Salici F, Valente A, Marchesini M, Compagnone C, Baciarello M, Manferdini ME, Fanelli G. Mechanisms of low back pain: a guide for diagnosis and therapy. F1000Res. 2016 Jun 28;5:F1000 Faculty Rev-1530. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.8105.2. PMID: 27408698; PMCID: PMC4926733.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4926733/
6. Lloyd, R.A., Butler, J.E., Gandevia, S.C., Ball, I.K., Toson, B., Stoodley, M.A. and Bilston, L.E. (2020), Respiratory cerebrospinal fluid flow is driven by the thoracic and lumbar spinal pressures. J Physiol, 598: 5789-5805. https://doi.org/10.1113/JP279458
https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1113/JP279458
7. Alkhuja S. Cough Radiculopathy: Postinfectious Cough-Related Acute Lumbar Radiculopathy. Case Rep Med. 2020 Aug 13;2020:2360854. doi: 10.1155/2020/2360854. PMID: 32855637; PMCID: PMC7442997.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7442997/
8. Ratnovsky, Anat & Elad, David & Halpern, Pinchas. (2008). Mechanics of respiratory muscles. Respiratory physiology & neurobiology. 163. 82-9. 10.1016/j.resp.2008.04.019
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/5271310_Mechanics_of_respiratory_muscles
9. Fruth, Stacie. (2006). Differential Diagnosis and Treatment in a Patient With Posterior Upper Thoracic Pain. Physical therapy. 86. 254-68. 10.1093/ptj/86.2.254. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7329172_Differential_Diagnosis_and_Treatment_in_a_Patient_With_Posterior_Upper_Thoracic_Pain
10. Lin, M.P. (2013). Musculoskeletal Back Pain.
https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Musculoskeletal-Back-Pain-Lin/f6d0bc7b86f66fe79f7e5bd07364cb09c1c0347b
11. Berth, Sarah & Lloyd, Thomas. (2020). Secondary Causes of Myositis. Current Treatment Options in Neurology. 22. 10.1007/s11940-020-00646-0.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346115361_Secondary_Causes_of_Myositis
12. Yaari S, Juravel E, Daana M, Heyman SN. Pleurisy Can Cause Chest Wall Tenderness: A Case Report. Eur J Case Rep Intern Med. 2020 Jul 23;7(10):001657. doi: 10.12890/2020_001657. PMID: 33083347; PMCID: PMC7546575.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33083347/
13. Reamy BV, Williams PM, Odom MR. Pleuritic Chest Pain: Sorting Through the Differential Diagnosis. Am Fam Physician. 2017 Sep 1;96(5):306-312. PMID: 28925655.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28925655/
14. Brigmaham and Women’s Hospital – Department of Rehabilitation Services – Standard of Care: Costochondritis
https://www.brighamandwomens.org/assets/BWH/patients-and-families/rehabilitation-services/pdfs/t-spine-costochondritis.pdf
