Thoracic back pain is can be a fairly common pathology, but is not as well studied as neck pain or low back pain. Thoracic back pain is more often due to serious spinal pathology than neck or low back pain, but thoracic back pain is also prevalent among healthy individuals without any serious underlying cause.
Common Mid-Back (Thoracic) Issues:
- Thoracic disc
- Rib pain
- Facet joints
- Fractured ribs, scapula
- Compression fractures
- Decreased rotational mobility
- Spinal stenosis
- Facet compression
- Nerve impingement (pins/needles often felt in the arm or down in the shoulder blade)
- Poor posture
- Thoracic strain or sprain
- Osteoporosis
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- Osteoarthritis
- Scheuermann’s Disease
- Scoliosis