Why You Always Get One-Sided Neck Pain

In some cases, pain on one side of your body indicates a specific health condition. Pain in the lower right side of your abdomen could mean an issue with your appendix, for example.

That could (understandably) lead you to believe that pain localized to one side of your neck means a specific issue.

Here at our office in Beverly Grove, Los Angeles, California, Patrick S Hill, MD, can help you find what’s causing your one-sided neck pain. As an expert in neck pain’s root causes — like cervical stenosis and disc degeneration — he can diagnose what’s behind your localized discomfort. More importantly, he applies treatment to help you find relief.

Let’s look at why you might be experiencing that pain in the neck on one specific side.

Causes of one-sided neck pain

You don’t have any internal organs in your neck. As a result, pain radiating from one side doesn't necessarily mean a specific health condition is at play.

Instead, one-sided neck pain usually indicates that you’re dealing with an issue in the components that make up that side of your neck. Both left and right-side neck pain often come from problems like:

Degeneration of one of the discs that cushion your spine
Narrowing of the spinal column in the neck (cervical stenosis)
Muscular issues, like strain or excessive contraction (torticollis)
Pinched nerves
Whiplash

The reason the pain is localized to one side could stem from activities you undertake that strain that side of your neck. For example, holding your phone between your ear and your shoulder on one side could play a role. Similarly, if you always sleep on the same side in an unsupportive position, that could strain the muscles on one side of your neck.

Relieving that side of your neck

Dr. Hill evaluates you at our office to discover what’s behind your one-sided neck pain. In some cases, another condition is to blame for your problem.

For example, you might have neck pain that stems from a pinched nerve (cervical radiculopathy). But that nerve issue might trace all the way back to cervical stenosis — a narrowing in your upper spinal column. By determining the source of your issue, Dr. Hill can apply targeted treatment to the source of your pain.

In many cases, that means starting with conservative treatment like:

Anti-inflammatory medication and injections
Bracing
Physical therapy

If your one-sided neck pain doesn’t improve, Dr. Hill scales up treatment as needed. Because he specializes in minimally invasive surgery, he has a wide range of tools he can use to help you put a stop to your neck pain.

To find out what’s behind your pain on one side and to get relief, call our office or schedule your appointment online today.