Pain between shoulder blades and armpit

Pain between the shoulder blade and armpits is also usually caused by the muscles or connective tissue. They can occur, for example, after excessive training with push-ups or by lifting too hard, often with some delay. A long-term, very one-sided strain on the muscles, for example from a desk job, can also lead to tension.

Walking on crutches, which places a heavy strain on the shoulder and chest muscles, can also be the cause. Mostly affected are the Musculus Latissimus Dorsi (the largest back muscle, which runs under the shoulder blade to the arm and limits the armpit from behind) and the smaller muscles underneath. The pain is often rather diffuse and difficult to localize.

It can be dependent on and independent of movement and breathing, and is sometimes very severe. They restrict the arm’s ability to move and can also occur when lying down, so that it is no longer possible to lie on the affected side. Especially when the position is changed while sleeping and the arm is moved in order to do so, these pains also disturb the night’s rest.

In addition, the tension can cause the intercostal muscles under the superficial muscles to be compressed, which causes further pain and a feeling of tightness. Do you work a lot sitting down? Stay fit and find out about movement exercises in our article Exercise examples for loosening and relaxing while sitting at your desk!

Pain between chest and ribs

Pain between the ribs can have very different causes. The most common are bruises and sore muscles. Tension in the muscles between the ribs or irritation of the nerves running between the ribs can also be possible causes.

The latter can be caused by comparatively small triggers, in women for example by a bra that is too tight. Less frequent causes of pain are so-called shingles (herpes zoster) or a broken rib. Pain between the ribs is sometimes very severe and can also cause an oppressive feeling of tightness in the breasts, which is why many affected people assume that they have a much worse disease than they actually have.