Darrick Robles What is muscle pain?
Muscle pain is technically referred to as myalgia . The pain can be localized to one spot or diffuse throughout the body. Although there may be primary damage to the muscle itself, such as a strain, myalgic symptoms can also be a non-specific symptom of a variety of neurological and other disorders.
Muscle pain is caused by the stimulation of special pain fibers called nociceptors . These receptors react in a specialized manner to stimuli that are objectively harmful to the tissue or subjectively painful. Strong mechanical stimuli, such as after an accident, a bruise, a torn muscle fiber or another type of overload release certain substances from the muscle cells, to which the nociceptors react.
A low pH, which can be caused by circulatory disorders, prolonged muscle contractions or muscle inflammation, can also lead to pain being felt via nociceptors. In addition, inflammatory mediators released by your own body irritate nociceptors, leading to pain. The stimulus threshold of the nociceptors is lowered by the body’s own substances, which causes the tenderness and movement pain in lesions of the muscle.
It is important to distinguish myalgia alone from myopathy . Myopathy is a disease of the muscles. Myositis, an inflammation of the muscles, must also be distinguished from this. While myopathy or myositis can trigger myalgic symptoms, most people with muscle pain have neither myopathy nor myositis.
Different types of muscle pain
A colorful pattern of symptoms is summed up under the term muscle pain. In the majority of cases, a combination of different symptoms is identified:
- pain on pressure and movement
- Transmission of muscle pain: In muscle pain, pain not only occurs directly at the site of the lesion, but can also be triggered at a greater distance. One speaks of so-called trigger points.
- Changes in tone as the cause of pain: Muscle tension or prolonged unwanted muscle contractions lead to a drop in pH and release of pain-causing substances into the muscle. Muscle tightness can also be caused by pain in another muscle or by changes in a nearby joint. One should therefore always look for the source of the complaints.
- Increased sensitivity to pain: Overexcitability of the nociceptors in chronic muscle pain can also result in increased sensitivity to pain
chronification of pain
One of the biggest problems in pain management is chronic pain. Treatment is lengthy because prolonged pain leads to functional and structural changes that take time to resolve. Long-lasting pain can lead to overexcitability of pain fibers, which then react with pain to stimuli that are not actually “painful” due to structural changes in ion channels. In addition, pain can also lead to remodeling processes in the central nervous system and form new pathways for pain perception. These fix the pain in the long term. Animal experiments have shown that the number of pain fibers required to perceive pain increases with increasing pain stimuli.
Causes of muscle pain
There are many different causes of muscle pain. The most common causes include:
- bruise
- strain
- hamstring tear
- muscle tension
- joint wear
- joint misalignment
- Peripheral Arterial Disease
- Flu
- Fibromyalgia
- Myofascial pain syndrome
- hypothyroidism
- SARS-CoV-2 Infection
- Drug side effects (esp. statins)
- Lyme-Borreliose
- lupus erythematosus
- Rheumatoide arthritis
- Polymyalgia rheumatica
- Myopathien
- Toxic (e.g. chronic alcohol overconsumption, heroin)
Diagnosing muscle pain
In the case of muscle pain, a traumatic cause such as a bruise or a torn muscle fiber must first be considered. Although these are painful, in most cases they do not require any further intensive therapy. The localization of the pain, the nature of the pain, the frequency and the course of the pain over time should be inquired about, as these can provide initial indications of the possible causes. Additional accompanying symptoms such as movement disorders, trigger points or skin conditions can also point the way.
If your treating doctor suspects that a myopathy or other underlying systemic disease could be behind your muscle pain, a blood draw, imaging measures (ultrasound, MRI) in rare cases, genetic testing or a muscle biopsy may be combined in one specialized center for this may be necessary.
When should I go to the doctor?
You should see a doctor right away if you have any of the following symptoms:
You should make an appointment and present yourself to a general practitioner if:
- The pain persists for more than 3 days and does not improve with self-treatment.
- you are in a lot of pain
- You can’t find the cause of the pain
- You show signs of inflammation (redness, swelling, warmth).
- You have been bitten by a tick .
- You have muscle pain in your calves that only occurs with exertion and disappears with rest.
- You have developed muscle pain after starting a new medication or increasing the dose of a known medication.
Muscle pain: what you can do yourself
Painkillers from the class of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and diclofenac reduce the production of pain-causing substances and are therefore of great importance in the treatment of muscle pain.
During the first 24-72 hours after muscle overload, cooling can relieve pain and reduce swelling. You should be careful never to cool directly with ice on your skin, as this can lead to frostbite-related damage to the skin and subcutaneous tissue.
After these first hours, the application of heat relieves cramps and pain. Massage and light stretching can help relieve muscle pain from overexertion or from fibromyalgia .
Treatment of muscle pain
Treatment for muscle pain is highly dependent on the cause of the condition and can range from symptomatic pain relief to treatment of an underlying muscle condition.
This is how Med-Healths can help with muscle pain
It can be difficult to pinpoint the causes of muscle pain and how serious it is. You can talk directly to a doctor via video via Med-Healths. They can help you to answer these questions and initiate further diagnostics or treatment steps.
