The Sub-Acromial Bursa
Have you ever experienced mid back or chest pain with twisting, deep breathing or coughing? You might feel like you are having a heart attack or you might just have a stiff rib!
When a rib is stiff we can feel rib pain in our mid back where it attaches to the spine or even radiating around the front of the chest.
Ribs are located in our chest from the collar bone down to our waist. They join at the spine and slope forward and around to the front.
The rib cage is from collar bone to upper waist.
When we breathe the ribs need to move up and down to allow the lungs to expand with inhalation and to shrink with exhalation.
Ribs move as we breathe and when we twist our middle back.
We can cause pain in the rib joint by, for example:
- Reaching forward with outstretched arm
- Lifting the kids into back of car with a forward bend
- Getting golf clubs out of boot and twisting
- Sudden heavy twist such as when kite surfing
- Repetitive bending and twisting like bricklaying
- Trying to carry and do too many things at once!
What does Physiotherapy do?
We determine the specific rib involved and the direction it is stiff. We then mobilise and sometime manipulate (the cracking sensation) to reduce stiffness and restore normal mobility.
Once the pain has settled it is important to examine why that movement caused pain and fix problem to prevent reoccurrence.
In Summary
Rib stiffness is a very common cause of chest and mid back pain. It is often caused by forward bending/twisting and lifting with an outstretched arm.
Rib pain doesn’t often go away on its own. It might settle but as soon as you put pressure on that rib again the sharp pain will hurt. It is very successfully treated by physio mobilisation/manipulation as usually it is simply a stiff joint not moving as it should.
