Pain from the neck: Cervical radiculopathy

What you know as a pinched nerve in the neck, BayCare Clinic specialists know as cervical radiculopathy.

The condition occurs when a nerve in the neck is compressed where it branches off from the spinal cord. That irritates the nerve and causes pain that pulses into the shoulder and arm. It also causes muscle weakness down the arm and into the hand.

Anyone can experience cervical radiculopathy.

“It’s just not an older person’s issue,” says Rachel R. Phillips, a certified physician assistant with BayCare Clinic Neurological Surgeons in Green Bay.

“Young people who have a herniated disk from some kind of sudden injury also can wind up with a pinched nerve.”

Among older adults, cervical radiculopathy occurs because of changes brought on by everyday wear and tear on the spine. Arthritis is one such cause.

Medication, physical therapy and steroid injections are common treatments for cervical radiculopathy, but surgery may be needed if those approaches aren’t effective. BayCare Clinic offers a full range of non-operative and surgical options.

If you have a pinched nerve and aren’t sure how to proceed, call BayCare Clinic Neurological Surgeons at 888-376-3876 or 920-288-8350.

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