Neck Pain Symptoms

Neck pain symptoms can vary widely. The pain may just be a mild nuisance, or it could be so excruciating that you need to avoid simple movements like turning your head.

Neck pain symptoms depend largely on two factors:

• The underlying cause of the issue, such as if a nerve is pinched or if a muscle is strained, and/or if the spinal cord is affected
• The cervical motion segment that is affected

Description of Neck Pain Symptoms

Neck pain usually involves one or more of the following symptoms and signs:

• Neck stiffness and lack of mobility.  Soreness and stiffness, with difficulty moving the neck and head side to side, is especially common.
• Sharp pain, stabbing or burning pain.  This pain may be localized to one spot and might feel like it is stabbing or stinging. Sharp pain typically occurs in the lower neck, at the C5-C6 and/or C6-C7 cervical motion segments.  Bending the neck forward and looking down typically will make sharp pain feel worse, and resting your head in a neutral position tends to feel better.
• General soreness. This discomfort is typically felt in a broader area or region of the neck. It is described as tender or achy, not sharp.  Changing positions to support the neck in an aligned position tends to make this type of pain feel better.
• Radicular pain.  Pain that is caused by radicular nerve impingement or irritation tends to radiate along a nerve from the neck into the shoulder and arm, and possibly into your hand and/or fingers. This nerve pain might feel like it is burning or searing.
• Cervical radiculopathy. Similarly, nerve impingement anywhere in the cervical spine can lead to neurological deficits in your arm, such as problems with weakness, poor reflexes, and feelings of numbness, pins and needles.  Cervical radiculopathy may occur on its own or along with radicular pain.
• Trouble with gripping or lifting objects. Arm strength and / or grip strength can decline if numbness or weakness goes into the arm or fingers.
• Headaches. Sometimes a problem in the neck can affect muscles and nerves connected to the head. Some examples include tension headache, cervicogenic headache, and occipital neuralgia.
• Neck pain and shoulder pain.  It is not uncommon for shoulder pain to accompany neck pain due to shared muscles and nerve pathways.

If neck pain symptoms progress, it can become difficult to sleep.

Neck pain may also interfere with other daily activities, such as getting dressed or going to work, or any activity that involves turning your head, such as driving.

Symptoms Depend on Which Spinal Motion Segments are Affected

Symptoms associated with neck pain may vary depending on whether a nerve is being compressed, and at what level of the cervical spine that is occurring.

For example, if a cervical disc herniation is compressing a nerve root at the cervical spine’s C5-C6 level (which would be the C6 nerve root), then the symptoms could be different from a disc herniation at another level of the cervical spine because those nerves travel to other parts of the body.

Many spinal conditions can cause nerve root symptoms, such as cervical spinal stenosis, osteoarthritis, bone spurs, and degenerated discs.

Here are some symptoms that can occur depending on which nerve root is affected in the cervical spine:

• C1 - C2 (C2 nerve root). These two nerve roots at the top of the cervical spine control the head. An irritation to these nerves could cause headaches.
• C2 – C3 (C3 nerve root).  The C3 nerve root provides sensation to the face and back of your head, so if this nerve root is affected it could cause a cervicogenic headache.
• C3 - C4  (C4 nerve root). These nerve roots help regulate the diaphragm, which is instrumental to breathing. An irritation to these nerves could harm breathing. The C4 nerve root can radiate pain to the lower neck and shoulder.
• C4 – C5 (C5 nerve root). If the C5 nerve root is impinged or irritated, shoulder pain and weakness can be experienced at the top of the upper arm.
• C5-C6 (C6 nerve root). If this nerve root is impinged or irritated, weakness can be experienced in the biceps and wrist. In addition, pain, tingling, and numbness can radiate through the arm to the thumb.
• C6 – C7 (C7 nerve root). Compression of this nerve root can cause weakness in the back of the upper arm, or pain can radiate down the back of the arm and/or into the middle finger.
• C7 – T1  (C8 nerve root). Compression of this nerve root can cause weakness with handgrip, along with numbness and tingling pain that radiates down the arm to the little finger.

Many types of neck pain and stiffness are felt more generally throughout the neck and do not radiate into other areas of the body and are more commonly associated with strained muscle or general degeneration.

How Neck Pain Symptoms Develop

Neck pain typically develops in one of the following ways:

• Slowly over time. Neck pain might start out as mild or only occur toward the end of a work day, but then it might recur and get worse with time.  For example, after a few years of using technology you may find that whenever you look down at your phone or laptop the lower part of your neck starts stinging, and it gradually gets worse over time.
• Immediately following an injury. Any type of sports injury, car accident or other accident can cause a problem in the neck that may lead to general soreness from a muscle strain to severe pain from a vertebral fracture.  Poor posture can also cause neck pain and stiffness, such as having slept with your neck in an awkward position.
• Delayed reaction after an injury. Neck sprain symptoms, such as after a car accident, might begin hours or a few days after the injury occurred. Some neck injuries can get worse over time.
• Suddenly without any prior signs. Sometimes neck pain can start in the middle of a normal day for no apparent reason.

Neck pain symptoms might be constant, go away quickly, come and go regularly, or return intermittently. Certain activities or movements, such as sneezing or coughing, could make the pain worse.