I Started Having Sharp Pain In My Upper Back Between

Posted on Thu, 20 Dec 2018

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 21 Dec 2018 Answered on

Last reviewed on

Question : I started having sharp pain in my upper back between my shoulder blades 2 days ago & now it has moved to my lower left back where my kidneys may be. I had gall bladder removed 6 yrs ago but it is similar pain. Any ideas? I have had some vaginal bleeding for 2 days but haven't had periods for 3 yrs (menopause?) Had cancer screening for bleeding results were benign

Answered by Dr. Dr.Dorina Gurabardhi (6 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Shoulder blades pain is probably related to muscle strain, further investigations needed

Detailed Answer:
Hello dear and welcome to ‘Ask A Doctor’ service.
I have reviewed your query and here is my advice.

I understand your concern.

There are many possible causes that can be related to your symptoms.

I would recommend the following examinations to confirm the diagnosis:

1) an abdominal ultrasound to exclude an inflammation of the pancreas

2) a chest x-ray to exclude pulmonary origin of the pain

3) an electrocardiogram to exclude cardiac origin

4) a complete blood count

The shoulder blade pain can also be related to a muscle strain.

The vaginal bleeding can be caused by dryness which is very common in menopause.

Meanwhile, I recommend continuing using a pain-killer medication (eg. Tylenol) to help with the pain.

Hope I have answered your query.
Let me know if I can assist you further.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Arnab Banerjee