Unfortunately, almost all of us have experienced some symptoms of neck pain at least once in our life, so much so that it is considered one of the most widespread musculoskeletal system disorders in the world : about 400 million people, more or less 5% of the world population. , suffer from it chronically while about 65% have the unpleasant experience at least once in their life.

The etymology of the term tells us a lot : cervix , Latin prefix that indicates the neck, the exact point where the painful symptoms of neck pain are concentrated, and which precedes the Greek suffix algia , or pain, has an ancient origin linked to the verb intertwine.

It was already known in ancient times, in fact, that in the cervical area , that is the neck that connects the brain and the rest of the vertebral column, a dense network of nerves is concentrated, which can easily become inflamed in particular cases .

Symptoms of neck pain and first approaches

That said, we can then define neck pain, a medical term for what we commonly and popularly call “cervical”, as a chronic pain that originates in the neck but which can partially extend to the head , back and, in most cases, behind .

Intensity and duration are variable : it can be a localized pain linked to a specific movement, or a diffuse and constant pain; just as it can concentrate in a few minutes or last several hours if not days .

In some cases it is relieved naturally with rest , while in others, paradoxically, it increases after a night of sleep making itself felt more intensely in the morning.

Massages (such as shiatsu ) and non-invasive therapies such as physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy can help not a little, but in many cases the problem re-emerges over time if the cause is deep and chronic.

Also the use of specific analgesic or relaxing creams and the practice of disciplines such as yoga with some particular asanas that can help but the most important thing is to discover the true cause of neck pain.

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Causes of neck pain

People of all kinds, of all ages and with different medical backgrounds experience the symptoms of neck pain , as the causes can be numerous and varied. Let’s see the most common, starting with the traumatic ones.

In the event of an accident involving the neck with excessive kinetic pressure on the neck, the cervical nerves can be affected for a long time by the trauma, transferring the pain resulting from an incorrect position to the nape, shoulders or back.

Not only trauma to the vertebrae but also muscle tears and neck pain can be at the origin of neck pain, as well as carotid artery problems .

Some cases of excessive workload or sports training overload can generate neck pain: jobs that stress the neck with a load of weight or sports such as wrestling or judo or bodybuilding where microtrauma and cervical strain are the order of the day, should be counterbalanced by proper rest and massages or preventive physiotherapy treatments.

We then move on to neck pain due to incorrect posture: hours of work in a station in front of the computer or in any case at a desk, such as in the office or at school, are one of the main causes of neck pain in the modern world , with a feeling of falling asleep in the neck muscles and localized pain in the shoulder relative to the hand using the mouse.

Then there is a whole series of pathologies that can be the cause of particular types of neck pain, we list for example neck tumors, degenerative arthritis, and a whole series of inflammations that target nerves or glands located in the neck and throat, with consequent enlargement of tissues and organs, which press on the nerves, starting all the symptoms of the case.

The same thing can be said for cases of infection localized in the same area and which, for better or worse, produce the same effects of inflammation, swelling, laceration of the tissues, sensitization of the nerves.

Returning to trauma, even accidents that do not directly target the neck, but that affect other areas of the spine, such as the sacrum or loins causing various types of back  pain  or such as a fall or a herniated disc , can still be at the origin of cervical pain.

Finally, we mention the stress of excessive sense of responsibility. Having “too many responsibilities on your shoulders” often translates psychosomatically into neck pain.