An individual with upper arm muscle pain can affect his/her daily activities significantly. The exact cause of the pain might be easy to determine particularly if the individual experienced a traumatic injury or recently engaged in a workout routine in the gym. Nevertheless, other possible causes of pain in the upper arm muscles particularly shoulder injuries, medical conditions and nerve compression might not be evident. A doctor should be consulted so that an accurate diagnosis can determine if he/she has upper arm muscle pain.
Muscle strain
Always bear in mind that muscle strain is a typical cause of upper arm muscle pain. This injury occurs once a muscle is overly stretched. Muscle strains vary in severity where there is minimal damage or complete tear of the muscle fibers.
Cases of mild strains can heal within 1-3 days while severe strains might take a few months to heal. The upper arm muscle strains can develop with strenuous lifting or constant use of the arm. The pain from these strains usually increases during activity and subsides with rest. Severe cases of strains can cause bruising on the skin in the upper arm.
Shoulder injury
Inflammation of the shoulder joint or tendons that move the shoulder can cause upper arm muscle pain. This pain is known as referred pain and usually felt throughout the exterior muscles, not in the shoulder where the injury actually occurred. The typical cause of this type of pain is shoulder impingement or pinching of the structures between the bones in the shoulder. This condition can develop from constant overhead work, prolonged poor posture or sports activities. The upper arm muscle pain increases during activity and can subside with rest. These shoulder injuries are often effectively treated with physical therapy.
Compression of the nerve
The nerves exit the spine in between each of the vertebra. The cervical spinal nerves depart the vertebrae in the neck which supply the sensation to the skin and power to the muscles in the arms and hands.
The spinal nerve C5 provides sensation to the upper arm. Take note that this nerve can end up compressed by the protruding discs that add padding between the bones in the spine or by the constriction of the holes where the nerves exit.
Compression of the C5 nerve can trigger upper arm muscle pain along the exterior border. The neck pain may or may not by present with this condition. Placing the arm over the head can reduce the upper arm muscle pain due to cervical nerve impingement.
Other possible conditions
In uncommon circumstances, upper arm muscle pain can be triggered by underlying medical conditions such as heart attack or stroke. Remember that these conditions can be life-threatening and accompanied by other symptoms such as tingling or numbness on one side of the body, slurred speech, weakness, dizziness, chest pain or pressure and pain that radiates to the jaw.