Arm Pain After Sneezing
Sneeze, an expulsion of air from the lungs through the nose and mouth, is sometimes accompanied by pain in the arms. What are the reasons behind arm pain after sneezing? What causes pain in the arms while sneezing? Achoo! God, can this be cured? Read on to find out.
She sneezed; I said, “God bless”; she held her arm tight; as though it were hurting badly. She sneezed again, still holding her arm as if in pain. I didn’t bless her again, as I was trying to figure out the logic behind this sequence of actions. It had started with her sneeze and had possibly ended with an aching arm. Was her action of holding her arm, a reaction to my blessing? How strange that was! Or was it due to arm pain after sneezing? I began wondering… As far as I remember, she had held her left arm after sneezing and her face showed pain. Was she suffering from left arm pain after sneezing? Be it left or right; till that day, I wasn’t aware of any kind of arm pain after sneezing. But when I gave her action a serious thought and asked her whether she experiences arm pain after sneezing, she replied with a sneezy “yes”. And I decided to read up about this strange phenomenon of pain in arms while sneezing. Here is what I found.
Arm Pain and Sneezing Yes, sneezing and arm pain can be related. There are people who experience severe pain in their arms while or after sneezing. Some complain of pain and numbness in the elbow, while others experience a shooting pain in their shoulders along with their lower arm. In some cases, the pain in arms while sneezing vanishes within seconds, while in certain cases, it lasts for a couple of minutes after sneezing and the pain shifts from the hands to the fingers. There are cases wherein people experience pain accompanied by a tingling sensation in one or both arms and the chest. More on left arm pain and tingling
. In case of chest and arm pain after sneezing, people link it with heart disease. There is shooting pain that initiates at the base of the neck and radiates from the shoulder right up to the fingers. A racking pain of this sort might seem to be associated with an underlying cardiovascular disease. But, it’s often not the case. Pain in arms while sneezing is common and often related to problems of the back, not the heart.
Arm Pain After Sneezing: Causes
According to experts, arm pain after sneezing can be the result of a compressed or pinched nerve. Also, a sudden movement of the neck while sneezing may lead to pain in the arm. A dislocated vertebra or other spinal problems may also be the reasons behind arm pain after sneezing. For example, cervical radiculopathy, or a pinched nerve in the cervical spine can lead to pain in the arms while sneezing. Also, sneezing results in building up of pressure on the herniated disc, which affects the nerves that run down the arms, giving them a tingling feeling and pain.
Weakness of the spine, compression of a spinal nerve, or neck and back injuries are some of the other causes of arm pain after sneezing. Rather, the weakness in the bones of the neck and back, manifests itself during involuntary reflexes like sneezing. It won’t be wrong to say that symptoms of neck and back problems become more evident during actions like sneezing or coughing.
Another cause of arm pain after sneezing could be strain in the muscles resulting from increased tension in the upper body while sneezing. The act of sneezing involves quite a bit of muscle activity, leading to building of tension in the muscles of the upper body. As the muscles try to contract in response to this tensing, they are strained. And this leads to pain in the shoulders and arms. One might experience pain in the arms while sneezing, especially when he/she is trying to stop the sneeze.
Arm Pain After Sneezing: Treatment
The treatment for arm pain after sneezing depends on the factor causing it. Hence, inspection and right diagnosis of the reason behind arm pain after sneezing, is the first step towards treating it. And the first and vital step towards the right diagnosis is a visit to your doctor. However comical it may seem, provide your doctor with the details of your arm pain after sneezing. He might ask you questions like where does the pain start, to which points on the arms it radiates and how long it lasts. Give him the real answers. He may advise you to go for an X-ray of the spinal cord in order to detect a neck or back problem, if any. In case of severe pain, you may require to undergo an MRI scan after which the problem of arm pain after sneezing can be solved.
If a pinched nerve is the cause for arm pain while sneezing, pain management drugs or injections with the consultation of your doctor can help. You can go for physical therapy, acupuncture or other chiropractic treatments.
In case of inflammation of the spinal cord or back injuries, anti-inflammatory medications and ice or heat therapy can be of help. Strained muscles need rest and the injured need to be healed. Light stretching exercises and muscle strengthening workouts can be of help in this case. Remember, exercises have to be supplemented with adequate rest. As already discussed, pain in the arms while sneezing can actually be the result of certain spinal problems. So treating them in the first place, is a sure way of getting rid of arm pain after sneezing. More on
- Back Strengthening Exercises
- Stretching Exercises for Back
So, the next time you see someone experiencing pain in the arms while sneezing, don’t just bless him and walk away. Share with him what you just read about, and tell him all you know about arm pain after sneezing.
