A neck strain is a muscle injury of the neck. A neck strain is quite a common injury and generally is a mild to moderate injury which clears by itself within a few days to a week.
Symptoms of a Neck Strain
- Pain in the neck area.
- Pain on turning the head or looking up or down.
- A stiff neck.
- A feeling of tightness in the muscles of the neck.
- There may be a tender area of muscle when you touch it.
- You may experience pain or tingling in the arms.
What is a Neck Strain?
A muscle strain is a tear of some of the muscle fibres. This may be just a few, in which case it is a grade one strain, or maybe up to 90% of the muscles fibres, which would be a grade 2 injury. A full muscle rupture is a grade 3 injury, this doesn’t often happen in the neck and isn’t generally described as a neck strain.
The muscles which are most commonly injured include Trapezius and Levator Scapulae.
A neck strain is often the result of a sudden movement or force to the head or neck. This may happen from a fall or a car accident and is often referred to as whiplash. Similar pain in one or more of the neck muscles may also occur after holding an awkward position for a prolonged period, such as holding a phone between the ear and shoulder, or sleeping awkwardly (e.g. sitting upright).
Treatment
- Rest from whatever activity caused it or anything that aggravates it.
- Try to keep the neck moving gently by twisting the head and looking up and down.
- Gently stretch the neck muscles.
- Anti-inflammatory medications may be recommended to you by a health professional.
- Apply ice if the injury happened from a sudden incident. 15 minutes at a time every 2-4 hours for the first 24-48 hours.
- After 48 hours, a warm pack can be used to relax the muscles and increase blood flow.
- Massage may also be helpful after the first 48 hours to stretch the muscles.
- If symptoms do not improve within a week, visit your Doctor.
Expert interview
Chiropractor Dr. Maria Madge talks about neck pain and relieving neck pain.
