Back Pain May Come From Chest

By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - If you have back pain it might be coming from a surprising source.

Back pain can occur in many different situations. One of the things we see a lot is spasms in the neck area and in the upper back in what we call the trapezius. But where you may also have a problem and not even know it is in the front with the pectoralis muscles.

Those muscles in the chest, perhaps the ones you try to build up through weightlifting and bench pressing, those muscles, when they're very tight, actually can pull around the shoulders causing a stooped shoulder position as well as pain.

This all leads to a very important point. The source of back pain needs to be understood before it can be treated. It is often the proper diagnosis that leads to the most rapid and effective therapy and it is very true in this case.