Shoulder pinched nerve is the most frequent and disabling condition. If a nerve becomes compressed by abnormal tissue around it – i.e., bone, cartilage, muscle, or tendon – then it becomes "pinched." Compression interferes with the process of the nerve to carry information correctly, inducing an enormously diverse range of symptoms based on location and degree of compression.

Within the shoulder, you may get pinched nerve in shoulder of any of all these categories of nerves, but most often that do get pinched are branches of the brachial plexus, which is a collection of nerves that begins in the neck and comes down in the arm. And when those get pinched around or within the shoulder joint, that's what usually does cause what all we refer to as pinched nerve in shoulder.

Common Causes of Pinched Nerve in Shoulder

There are some causes due to which pinched nerve in shoulder is induced. Those causes must be found out so that they can be treated and avoided accordingly:

  • Repetitive Movements: Prolonged overhead repetitive movements or prolonged shoulder and arm pain postures may lead to overloading of the tissues surrounding them and can lead to nerve compression. This is seen in certain occupations, sporting activities (e.g., baseball pitching or swimming), and even in normal activities.
  • Trauma: Trauma to the shoulder region, such as blow to shoulder, fall on shoulder, or sporting injury, will result in inflammation and swelling that is likely to compress nerves in the area. Dislocation or fracture of the shoulder will directly compress tracts of nerves.
  • Osteoarthritis and autoimmune disease (rheumatoid arthritis) may cause irreversible changes in bones and the shoulder joint. Bone spurs in the shape of bone spurs or inflammation of the joint may result in the narrowing of passages through which nerves travel, thereby causing pinched nerve of the shoulder.
  • Posture: Forward slouching or leaning will cause extra stress to the nerves of the shoulder and neck. This would create chronic nerve compression in the shoulder.
  • Muscle Strain or Weakness: Shoulder joint tension or weakened muscles will alter the biomechanics of the shoulder and create nerve impingement. For example, tight pectorals will pull the shoulders backward, a position which will cause nerve compression.
  • Bone Spurs: These bone spurs, as also mentioned above, might result from arthritis or other degenerative diseases and impinge the lying nearby nerves directly.
  • Swelling: Swelling on any ground, i.e., injury, excessive use, or disease, might result in swelling of adjacent tissues compressing the nerves.
  • Underlying Medical Conditions: Underlying medical conditions such as diabetes render an individual susceptible to nerve damage and thus susceptible to pinching of the nerve.

Discovery of Symptoms of a Pinched Shoulder Nerve

The symptoms of a pinched shoulder nerve will differ based on which nerve is being pinched and to what extent it is being pinched. Some of the typical signs include:

  • Pain: This is often the first symptom and can range from a stabbing, burning quality type to dullness. Pain can extend down the arm, to the hand, or even up into the upper neck and upper back.
  • Numbness or Loss of Feeling: You may have numbness or loss of feeling in the shoulder, arm, or hand, often along the course of a specific nerve.
  • Pinching or Tingling and Pins and Needles: Pins and needles sensation is the same as the feeling you experience when your limb is "asleep," and it is one of the most frequent sensations of irritable nerves.
  • Weakness: Arm, shoulder, or hand weakness could be due to weakness in some movements or in power of grasping.
  • Burning Sensation: Some people have a sharp burning or burning sensation along the offending nerve as a symptom.

Here, it should be noted that in what direction and where symptoms occur also can determine which of the nerves is compressed.