“How do I know if I pulled a muscle or pinched a nerve?”
I am a 37 year old male. I wonder how can I know if I pulled a muscle or pinched a nerve?
5 Answers
Muscle pain is localized in one area and nerve pain travels down a limb. Also with nerve pain you feel numbness and tingling.
An evaluation by a chiropractor to determine pulled muscle versus a pinched nerve
Several factors help differentiate the two. Location of the injury, character of the pain (burn, ache, shooting, etc) , if it hurts with certain movements (passive or active) it’s difficult to make a determination without more information.
The best way to know is to visit your chiropractor or health care provider who will take a history and do an examination. There are some clues, but without the examination it is difficult to say. Some of the things you may experience with a pinched nerve is numbness, tingling, and weakness. A pulled muscle usually hurts more when you move the muscle. Again, if you think you have either of these problems, please visit your chiropractor or other health care provider.
A pinched nerve usually radiates pain down the arms or legs and usually gets worse with spinal movement. Pulled muscles usually have more local pain and the pain usually gets worse when the muscle is activated.
