Neck Pain

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Pain & Nociception
Wear and disc bulges on a neck scan are common in people who never have neck pain, and whether the nervous system is turning pain up or down does not show on a scan. So scan findings often do not match neck pain, and for ordinary neck pain with no red flags and no nerve symptoms, routine imaging is not the first step.

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What the neck is made of

EVIDENCEREVIEW 1 · MECH 1

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Almost everyone has had a neck that is stiff, achy, or painful to turn. Most of the time no bone is broken; this machine, which has to stay mobile while holding up a head of about five kilograms, is just temporarily not running smoothly. The pain usually sits below the back of the skull and runs down both sides toward the shoulders.

The seven neck vertebrae (C1–C7) are the most mobile section of the whole spine. The deep neck flexors, which hug the front of the spine, act like an inner layer of stabilizing cables that hold the neck's curve; the upper trapezius on the outside does the heavy lifting and tends to tighten up under stress. The spinal cord runs through here, and nerve roots supply the arms, so some neck problems cause pain or tingling that reaches the hand.

A few situations are not ordinary neck pain: neck pain after significant trauma, or hands growing clumsy, a floaty, unsteady walk, changes in bladder or bowel control, or a sudden, thunderclap-severe headache. For any of these, go to the emergency department right away.

Watch this step as a mechanism animationOpen mechanism

Educational content, not medical advice — consult a clinician.

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Neck Pain

Story

Connected to · 1

regulates · 1

Pain & Nociception
Wear and disc bulges on a neck scan are common in people who never have neck pain, and whether the nervous system is turning pain up or down does not show on a scan. So scan findings often do not match neck pain, and for ordinary neck pain with no red flags and no nerve symptoms, routine imaging is not the first step.

Read full story

Stop 1/6

What the neck is made of

EVIDENCEREVIEW 1 · MECH 1

READ THE ORIGINAL

Almost everyone has had a neck that is stiff, achy, or painful to turn. Most of the time no bone is broken; this machine, which has to stay mobile while holding up a head of about five kilograms, is just temporarily not running smoothly. The pain usually sits below the back of the skull and runs down both sides toward the shoulders.

The seven neck vertebrae (C1–C7) are the most mobile section of the whole spine. The deep neck flexors, which hug the front of the spine, act like an inner layer of stabilizing cables that hold the neck's curve; the upper trapezius on the outside does the heavy lifting and tends to tighten up under stress. The spinal cord runs through here, and nerve roots supply the arms, so some neck problems cause pain or tingling that reaches the hand.

A few situations are not ordinary neck pain: neck pain after significant trauma, or hands growing clumsy, a floaty, unsteady walk, changes in bladder or bowel control, or a sudden, thunderclap-severe headache. For any of these, go to the emergency department right away.

Watch this step as a mechanism animationOpen mechanism

Educational content, not medical advice — consult a clinician.