Symptoms

• Neck pains due to strained muscles cause these symptoms:
• The head is often cocked to one side
• Can't bend the head backward or put the chin to each shoulder. Often, can still bend the neck forward (touch the chin to the chest).
• The neck muscles are often sore to the touch

Causes of Neck Pain

• In teens, new neck pain is mostly from strained neck muscles (muscle overuse).
• Triggers are sleeping in an awkward position or fixing something on the ceiling. Reading in bed or working on a computer for hours can also cause neck pain.
• At all ages, it can be from a swollen lymph node. That can cause spasm of the neck muscle it lies against.

Causes of Stiff Neck

• A stiff neck means your child can't touch the chin to the chest.
• Meningitis is one of the serious causes of a stiff neck with fever. Suspected meningitis needs to be seen now.

Pain Scale

• Mild: Your child feels pain and tells you about it. But, the pain does not keep your child from any normal activities. School, play and sleep are not changed.
• Moderate: The pain keeps your child from doing some normal activities. It may wake him or her up from sleep.
• Severe: The pain is very bad. It keeps your child from doing all normal activities.

1. What You Should Know:
   • Most new neck pain is from stretching and turning the neck muscles too much. This causes strained muscles from muscle overuse.
   • Looking up or to the side for too long is a common trigger.
   • When muscle pain starts without reason, it's often from sleeping in an awkward position.
   • Here is some care advice that should help.
2. Pain Medicine:
   • To help with the pain, give acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) or ibuprofen. Use as needed. See Dose Table.
3. Cold Pack:
   • During the first 2 days, use a cold pack or ice wrapped in a wet cloth.
   • Put it on the sore muscles for 20 minutes.
   • Repeat 4 times on the first day, then as needed.
   • Reason: Reduces pain and any spasm.
   • Caution: Avoid frostbite.
4. Heat Pack:
   • If pain lasts over 2 days, put heat on the sore muscles.
   • Use a heat pack, heating pad or warm wet washcloth.
   • Do this for 10 minutes, then as needed.
   • Caution: Avoid burns.
5. Sleep:
   • Sleep on the back or side, not the stomach.
   • Sleep with a neck collar.
   • Use a foam neck collar (from a drug store). If don't have one, wrap a small towel around the neck.
   • Reason: Keep the head from moving too much during sleep.
6. Activity:
   • Protect the neck for 48 hours. Then start a gentle stretching program.
   • Avoid any sports or work that increase the pain.
7. What to Expect:
   • New neck pain without a reason most often goes away in a few days.
   • Neck pain from muscle overuse (strained neck muscles) goes away in 1 to 2 weeks.
8. Call Your Doctor If:
   • Neck pain becomes severe
   • Stiff neck occurs
   • Pain starts to shoot into the arms, upper back or legs
   • Pain lasts more than 2 weeks
   • Your child becomes worse