Middle Back Pain
Your middle back is considered anywhere between your shoulder blades down to the bottom of your rib cage. If you feel pain above this area, it's upper back pain, and if the pain is lower, it's lower back pain. Mid-back pain often hurts with movement, limiting your flexibility.
There are many reasons for mid-back pain right side and mid-back pain left side. But if you're suffering, you need to seek middle back pain treatment so you can breathe easily again. Visit a back pain specialist to get the best care, including an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment.
Middle Back Pain NYC — SPIN Sports Pain Specialists
Ready to get relief from middle back pain?
Same-day middle back pain appointments available.
Diagnosing the Causes of Middle Back Pain
Since pain in your middle back can signal a variety of ailments, including injuries and diseases, you need to see a physician to determine the cause of the pain.
To get to the bottom of the source of your pain, your doctor:
- Conducts a thorough physical examination
- Asks about your medical history, including any recent accidents
- May order an X-ray, CT scan, or MRI
Your pain specialist's goal is to find the exact reason you're in pain. The cause may be muscular, skeletal, or nerve-related. An accurate diagnosis points your doctor to the most effective mid-back pain treatment. The possible causes of your pain include:
- A pulled muscle, which causes other structures in your back to overcompensate
- A muscle or ligament sprain in your back can be caused when you try to lift something the wrong way
- Arthritis, which often attacks the cartilage of your joints, including the joints of your spine
- Osteoarthritis or facet joint syndrome, which makes it hard to bend without pain
- Osteoporosis, which reduces the density of your bones, usually in people older than 40
- An injury to your spine or ribs that causes immediate pain
- A herniated disc in the middle part of your back
- Spinal stenosis, which squeezes your spinal cord, although this ailment is more common in your upper or lower back
Symptoms of Mid-Back Pain
Your symptoms from mid-back pain right side or mid-back pain left side almost always involve pain and tightness. The pain can emanate from anywhere in the middle of your back or sides, which may:
Shoot up to your neck or around your ribs
Come and go, depending on your movement
Hurt more when you breathe deeply, cough or sneeze
You likely feel stiff as well. Because of the pain, you may not want to twist, turn or bend. All the movements you used to take for granted now cause pain. If the pain isn't severe, you can try rest and stretch, but more often, you'll have to seek mid-back pain treatment to cure the underlying issue that's causing your pain.
Middle Back Pain Treatment
To provide relief, your pain specialist may start you out on pain medication. If over-the-counter medicine – such as common non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) – haven't worked, your physician may have you try stronger treatments, such as:
- Prescription ointments that you apply topically
- Muscle relaxants that are prescription-strength
- Injections that contain a corticosteroid anti-inflammatory medicine, as well as a local anesthetic, including:
- Epidural steroid injection
- Nerve block injection
- Thoracic epidural injection
- Spine facet injection
The steroid injections kill your pain while working to calm the inflamed area in your spine. Unless the inflammation is the sole cause of your pain, these injections are effective for just two or three months. You can repeat the procedure, but these injections can't be a long-term solution, as repeated steroid injections are ultimately detrimental to your health.
Ready to find relief from middle back pain?
Dr. Melepura's Midtown Manhattan clinic offers same-day appointments for evaluation and treatment.
Managing Your Mid-Back Pain
You have two choices for middle back pain treatment:
- You can manage your pain while you adjust your lifestyle to fit your new reality.
- You can deal with the cause of the pain to stop the pain at its source.
Pain management involves not only medication and injections but also stretching, exercise, and physical therapy. All deliver results in reducing pain. Curing the source of your pain may possibly involve surgery. Back surgery, like all surgeries, carries risks, however. Which mid-back pain relief method you choose is up to you and your physician.
Real Stories from our Patients
Dr. Febin Melepura, MD
Double Board-Certified Pain Specialist
Meet Dr. Febin Melepura — Your Middle Back Pain Specialist in NYC
Dr. Febin Melepura, MD is a double board-certified interventional pain management specialist and the founder of the Sports Pain Institute of New York. He completed his residency and fellowship training at New York Presbyterian Hospital / Columbia University Medical Center, one of the nation's leading academic medical centers.
He holds dual board certifications from the American Board of Anesthesiology and the American Board of Pain Medicine, and has treated more than 7,500 patients and performed over 5,250 procedures throughout his career. He has been named a Top Pain Management Doctor in New York and one of America's Top Doctors™ by Castle Connolly.
Dr. Melepura's approach to middle back pain is rooted in precision: identify the exact source, treat it with a targeted injection, and get you back to your daily life as quickly as possible.
Ready to Book an Appointment?
Same-day appointments available. Call (212) 621-7746 or book online.
What Our Middle Back Pain Patients Say
"Able to make an appointment to see Dr. Melepura on short notice… attentive to my concerns… Jazmin was also very kind and helpful."
"Excellent hospitality, listener and explainer… highly recommend the doctor and the place."
"Dr. Melepura is the best! He worked with me to find the optimal solution to my shoulder pain while I was preparing for a fight!"
"Lovely, bright and modern… doctor and staff were kind… felt my concerns were heard."
"Helpful and friendly staff who gladly follows up with you if and when needed. Dr Melepura was very helpful and professional as well as provided me with excellent information and feedback."
"Dr Febin is fantastic! Highly recommend him and his practice the Spin clinic. The doctor is a good listener, kind, attentive and gave me great advice. "
"Dr.Melepura was very efficient and interpersonal, felt like he was understanding the problems I was having and explained the processes to take to rehabilitate. I would recommend."
"I felt listened to and truly understood by Dr. Melepura. Started PT the very next day. They were very friendly and I didn't feel rushed at all. Already recommended them to my friends who have or continue to play through pain."