Upper Back Pain

Most of the time when people come in with upper back pain they believe the source of the pain is either the rhomboid muscle or upper trapezius. Both are located above the shoulder blade and closer to the neck. However, the problem usually originates in the splenius capitis (which is right by the shoulder blade) or semispinalis (which is located a few inches below the rhomboid).

Performing cross fiber friction massage on the splenius capitis or semispinalis virtually eliminates all the pain associated with a patient’s upper back.

I can also access the supraspinatus while a patient is face down and perform cross fiber friction massage on it should I determine during the initial assessment if it’s the cause of a patient’s pain or physical restriction.