As people are subjected to various stressful activities everyday, it is not surprising how, at the end of the day, muscle pains and other stress related discomforts may be experienced. These stressful activities however may also include pain, persistent or not, in the shoulder area of the body. Specifically, one may suffer pain in the left shoulder blade area. A number of causes may account for such conditions. But before we proceed our exposition as to what may cause pain in the left shoulder blade, let us first identify which part of the body exactly do we refer to when we say “shoulder blade.”



The shoulder blade, which is also known as the scapula, is the part of the human body – specifically, a bony structure – which connects the upper arm to the chest wall. It may also form part of the joint socket connecting the upper arm to the body. This bony structure is surrounded by tendons, muscles and tissues which function as cushion for the shoulder blade. This cushion allows the arms and the shoulders to move smoothly.

Pain in left shoulder blade may be caused by some inflammation of the tendons or sinews in the left part of the shoulder blade. Strained and overworked muscles or torn tissues in the part of the left shoulder blade may also account for moderate to acute pain in left shoulder blade. If the large muscle called the trapezius becomes spastic in the left shoulder blade area, then one will feel pain in the left part of his shoulder blade. Spastic muscles may be due to trauma or overuse.

However, not all instances of pain in the left shoulder blade can be categorized as conditions resulting from strained muscles or tendons. One may feel pain in left shoulder blade although there really is nothing wrong in that particular region of the body. Rather, the pain felt may be pain transmitted from another part or organ of the body. It is a signal that another organ is in pain and is in need of immediate attention. This process of pain being transmitted from one organ to the left shoulder blade area is called referred pain. Radiated pain to the left shoulder area may actually indicate medical problems in the other parts of the body. Therefore, these radiated pains from the other organs of the body may properly be the cause of pain in left shoulder blade.

What all these imply is that the pain felt in specific areas of the shoulder blade may be indicative of which organ may have been affected and have been radiating the pain. Left shoulder blade pain may be a signal of some abdominal or stomach-related problems. This may include ulcers, pancreatic, and ectopic pregnancy among others. Pain in left shoulder blade may also indicate problems in the chest region. These problems would include pneumonia, heart attack and/or other heart-related ailments, aortic dissection, pleuritis etc. Although pain in left shoulder blade may just be caused by some strained muscles and tendons, it may also indicate diseases or pain radiated form the other organs of the body. To be safe, it is always prudent that when symptoms arise, one goes to consult with a physician to get proper diagnosis and medication.