Upper Back Pain Treatment in Greenville, SC
Upper Back Pain Treatment in Greenville, SC. Root-cause acupuncture + functional medicine. Dr. Hendry, DAOM, NCBAHM-certified. Call (864) 365-6156.
"Excellent. I was a skeptic and informed Dr. Hendry of such. I have a broken neck from a racing accident over 40 plus years ago. The results have been remarkable and I am a believer in acupuncture."
— Michael F. McLeod · April 2015 · Google Review
The locked feeling between the shoulder blades that won't release no matter how many times you roll your shoulders? That's typically the rhomboids and mid-trapezius in a sustained contracture driven by forward-head loading — and it won't respond to stretching because the trigger points generating it are self-sustaining at the motor endplate level. I needle those points directly, add bladder meridian acupuncture along the thoracic paraspinals, and then usually add cupping to break the fascial restriction that's been building in the upper back.
How Upper Back Pain Treatment Works
Upper back pain treatment combines acupuncture (targeting thoracic paraspinal points, Governing Vessel, and Bladder meridian points) with precise trigger point dry needling of the most common upper back muscle offenders — upper trapezius, rhomboids, infraspinatus, and serratus anterior. Cupping therapy is often added to the upper back for myofascial release and circulation enhancement.
Conditions Treated with Upper Back Pain Treatment
Thoracic Needling and Postural Correction vs. Ergonomic Adjustments Alone for Postural Upper Back Pain
Ergonomic interventions, including monitor height adjustment, lumbar support, and keyboard positioning, address the environmental conditions that provoke thoracic muscle overload. They are appropriate and necessary as part of a comprehensive plan. However, ergonomic correction does not deactivate the trigger points that have already formed within the rhomboid, levator scapulae, and upper trapezius. Once a trigger point is established, its biochemical microenvironment, documented by Shah et al. (Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 2008) to contain elevated substance P and bradykinin, becomes self-sustaining independent of the original postural provocation. A patient with six months of interscapular pain who receives a new workstation setup will experience reduced provocation but continued spontaneous pain from the existing trigger point load. Dommerholt and Huijbregts (2011) are explicit that established myofascial trigger points require direct mechanical intervention, not environmental modification alone, for full deactivation. Our approach uses ergonomic assessment as a necessary adjunct while applying dry needling to the existing trigger points and addressing the diaphragmatic and thoracic mobility deficits that sustain postural overload. The combination produces lasting relief that neither ergonomics nor needling achieves independently.
Research & Evidence
Thoracic spine pain involving the rhomboids, middle and lower trapezius, and thoracic erector spinae is among the most prevalent musculoskeletal complaints in working adults, driven by sustained forward head posture, prolonged screen use, and the accessory respiratory muscle overload associated with chronic stress and poor diaphragmatic function. Trigger points in the rhomboids generate characteristic interscapular pain that is often misidentified as cardiac or visceral in origin. Dommerholt and Huijbregts (2011) detail the neuromuscular pathophysiology of these postural trigger point patterns, noting that the combination of static loading with ischemia creates the conditions for trigger point formation in scapular stabilizers. Our thoracic protocols address the fascial and myofascial layers systematically: suboccipital decompression for cervicogenic contributions, dry needling of the rhomboids and mid-trapezius for primary trigger point deactivation, and acupuncture along the bladder meridian, which maps precisely to the thoracic paraspinal musculature. Functional medicine assessment identifies the stress physiology and breathing mechanics contributing to chronic thoracic bracing.
Your First Appointment
Wear or bring a loose top for easy back access. Bring any ergonomic reports, physical therapy notes, or prior imaging. Postural and workstation habits are an important part of the clinical picture for upper back pain.
Why Dr. Hendry for Upper Back Pain Treatment
Dr. Hendry's trigger point dry needling expertise is particularly effective for the complex upper back trigger point patterns that refer to the head, neck, and arms. His 25 years of treating upper back pain have refined his ability to identify the key driver muscles rapidly.