Nerve problem or muscle strain?

[XxgulliverxX]

This may or may not be caused by a sudden hard pull up workout wherein I came to a complete dead hang, allowing for as much of a stretch as possible (potentially pulling the latissimus dorsi apart?).

At any rate...

I have an intermittent pain, off and on all day long, that can last for as little three seconds or three-plus hours--usually closer to the latter.  It occurs around, literally, my right shoulder blade, my right trapezius, the right side of my neck, the outside portion of my right arm and my right tricep.  The pain is not always in the same area but it is always in one or more of the areas I mentioned.  It can be a dull ache or, if I stretch or strain in a particular direction, a sharper but not acute pain.

I was torn on whether it was a muscle or nerve problem because it's a more unnatural, nerve-feeling kind of pain, but the reason I had considered a muscle problem is because my strength in my right arm has dropped precipitously: lifting my arm straight out is as difficult as lifting a 50 pound dumb bell, I can't easily do a push-up or a dip a shoulder press exercise, let alone pull-ups.  There is no power; it's completely weak and instead of using any lat-muscle strength it seems that when I attempt things with my right arm it only uses back and shoulder muscles.  Even reaching for the radio knob in the car is a challenge.

I have been taking it easy for awhile--going on 3 weeks now--but it has not gotten any better at all.  It is pretty frustrating because I like to keep in shape, running or lifting weights every day, but with the weather here right now lifting is the only thing I can do and now because of the injury I can't do anything.  I feel like I am distinegrating because I can't really exercise.  I also drive a tank in the military where we are expected to lift and carry heavy things and perform a lot of functions requiring the use of those muscles (e.g., dip-like function getting in the hatch), so I need to get better as soon as possible.

[JainMD]

Hi,
Exactly everything fits in to same. When I said neuropathy it says that you are having some nerve injury.
This nerve injury could also be associated with your muscle pull.
It does make difference when you say that your muscle problem happened all of sudden as myopathy due to neuropathy is a gradual process.
But muscle injury all of a sudden could be due to muscle pull.
Keep me informed if you have any queries.
Bye.

[XxgulliverxX]

By the way, for what it's worth I have gotten two people off the record to hear me out and guess at what ails me: a sports therapist thought it sounded like a nerve thing because the pain was fairly persistent and the Navy corpsman at my unit thought it sounded like a classic muscle strain from the pull-ups.

[XxgulliverxX]

Thanks for your response.  Actually, I don't think I have any tingling or numbness and the loss in muscle strength was very sudden, not a gradual kind of atrophy.  Does that make any difference?

[JainMD]

Hi Gulliver,
How are you feeling?
I think you are suffering from neuropathy as you are having pain, tingling and numbness. Due to this neuropathy you are also having disuse muscular atrophy as you have mentioned that your muscles have become weak.
I think you should be seeing a neurologist or a skeletal-musculo specialist at earliest and get some investigations like EMG and NCV studies.
A visit to physiotherapist is must as he will help you in regaining the lost muscle strength in a proper scientific approach.
Keep me informed if you have any queries.
Bye.