INTRODUCTION
If you are suffering from frozen shoulder, rotator cuff irritation, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, forearm tightness, wrist pain, hand pain, finger pain, or arm and hand numbness, you are in the right place. Many patients don’t realize chiropractors treat upper-extremity conditions, yet the shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand are deeply affected by spinal alignment, posture, nerve function, and joint mechanics.
Scroll down to find the condition that best matches your symptoms and learn how our approach can help restore normal movement, reduce pain, and prevent long-term damage.
SHOULDER PAIN
Overview of Symptoms
- Pain lifting or lowering the arm
- Sharp pain reaching behind the back or overhead
- Deep ache inside the shoulder or upper arm
- Difficulty sleeping on the affected side
- Grinding, popping, catching, or slipping sensations
- Weakness with lifting, pushing, or carrying
- Pain radiating toward the elbow
- Limited range of motion or stiffness
- Posture-triggered pain (desk work, driving, repetitive use)
- Numbness or tingling when shoulder mechanics affect nerve pathways
How Chiropractic Can Help
Chiropractic improves scapular alignment, upper-thoracic posture, and cervical nerve flow — all of which influence shoulder mechanics. By restoring joint motion, reducing inflammation, and rebalancing overworked muscles in the rotator cuff, deltoid, pecs, traps, and stabilizers, we help reduce irritation, improve symmetry, and restore functional shoulder movement.
Recommended Therapies for Upper Extremities Pain
Our treatments reduce inflammation, stimulate metabolic healing activity, increase blood flow, and support healthy tissue repair. After reviewing your exam and X-rays, your doctor will select the therapy (or combination of therapies) that is best suited for your specific condition.
Therapies We Offer:
- Chiropractic Adjustments
- Spinal & Cervical Decompression
- Laser Therapy (Class II & IV)
- Shockwave Therapy
- Pulsation Electromagnetic Field Therapy (PEMF — pelvic-floor stabilization*)
- Ovation ULT Red-Light Therapy Bed
- Posture & Stabilization Training
*PEMF contraindications apply
ELBOW & FOREARM PAIN
Overview of Symptoms
- Sharp or burning pain on the inner or outer elbow
- Pain with gripping, lifting, twisting, typing, or repetitive work
- Radiating pain into the forearm or wrist
- Weakness when gripping objects or shaking hands
- Clicking or tenderness around the elbow joint
- Tight forearm muscles that do not release with stretching
- Difficulty lifting objects or turning doorknobs
- Numbness or tingling extending into the hand
- Pain worsened by poor posture or shoulder imbalance
How Chiropractic Can Help
We determine whether pain originates from the elbow itself, the forearm musculature, irritated tendons, cervical nerve involvement, shoulder imbalance, or posture. Restoring proper alignment in the cervical spine, shoulder, elbow, and wrist reduces mechanical strain and improves nerve flow. This improves healing outcomes in tendinitis, tendinosis, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, and chronic overuse injuries.
WRIST & HAND PAIN / CARPAL TUNNEL
Overview of Symptoms
- Numbness or tingling in the thumb, index, or middle finger
- Hand weakness or difficulty gripping
- Burning pain across the wrist or palm
- Symptoms worsening at night
- Wrist stiffness with bending or gripping
- Pain radiating up the forearm
- Tingling when typing, texting, or driving
- “Shake-it-out” feeling needed to relieve numbness
How Chiropractic Can Help
We determine if symptoms are true carpal tunnel or actually coming from the neck, shoulder, or elbow (a common problem known as Double Crush Syndrome). Chiropractic restores alignment in the wrist, elbow, shoulder, and cervical spine, decreases irritation around the median nerve, reduces forearm muscle tension, improves nerve flow, and corrects posture-driven overload.
ARM & HAND NEUROPATHY
Overview of Symptoms
- Numbness, tingling, or “pins and needles” in the hand or fingers
- Burning or electric pain down the arm
- Weak grip or “dropping objects”
- Symptoms worsening with typing, driving, or overhead motions
- Forearm tightness that doesn’t stretch out
- Pain that changes with neck movement or posture
- Aching into the shoulder, biceps, or wrist
- Coldness or temperature changes in one hand
WHAT TO EXPECT AT YOUR FIRST VISIT
Your first visit includes a detailed case history, a thorough examination with orthopedic and neurological testing, full-spine X-rays taken at The DC Original, and a postural analysis. You will also receive a complementary therapeutic modality chosen to offer maximum relief, along with a safe, relief-focused chiropractic adjustment on day one. At your second appointment, your doctor will review your X-rays, explain your diagnosis, and outline your customized treatment plan.
A Note for Patients With Prior Surgery
Many patients believe they cannot see a chiropractor after orthopedic surgery — but this is not true. We safely treat patients who have undergone shoulder, elbow, wrist, hand, and cervical surgeries using modified techniques, targeted therapies, decompression when appropriate, and nerve-friendly stabilization strategies. There is always a safe way to help.
NERDS ONLY — The Deep Dive Into Why Upper-Extremity Pain Happens
Upper-extremity conditions rarely originate from the joint where pain is felt. The shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand form a single mechanical and neurological chain, all powered by the neck and upper thoracic spine.
Poor posture — especially rounded shoulders and forward head posture — destabilizes the shoulder blade, stretches the upper back muscles, compresses the cervical discs, and strains the nerves that travel into the arm. This is why shoulder imbalance leads to elbow tendon overload, wrist irritation, or hand numbness.
The cervical spine is the starting point for every nerve traveling into the arm. When C5–T1 nerve roots become irritated from misalignment, loss of cervical curvature, tech-neck posture, disc issues, or inflammation, the entire upper extremity becomes vulnerable. Symptoms may appear at the shoulder, elbow, wrist, or hand — even if those joints are structurally normal. This is the foundation of Double Crush Syndrome, where irritation in one region makes a nerve more sensitive to compression elsewhere.
The shoulder complex is highly mobile but easily destabilized. When the scapula rounds forward or the humeral head drifts forward/downward (classic posture in desk workers, drivers, students, and anyone on their phone), the rotator cuff becomes overloaded, the bursa inflames, and nerve tunnels tighten. Shoulder asymmetry also forces the elbow and wrist to absorb mechanical stress they were never designed for.
The elbow becomes overworked when the shoulder and scapula lose stability. Because most forearm muscles originate above the elbow, even slight postural imbalance or cervical nerve irritation dramatically increases tension on the tendons, leading to tendinitis or tendinosis.
The wrist and hand often become symptomatic because they are the “end of the chain.” Misalignment at the shoulder or elbow alters wrist angles, compresses the median or ulnar nerve, and creates repetitive strain. Many “carpal tunnel” diagnoses actually originate from the neck or shoulder, not the wrist itself.
In short:
Upper-extremity pain is rarely an isolated joint problem — it’s a kinetic chain problem.
When the neck, shoulder blade, thoracic spine, elbow, and wrist are restored to proper alignment and mobility, nerve flow improves, inflammation drops, and chronic upper-extremity pain finally begins to resolve.
If you’re still reading… yes — you’re absolutely one of our favorite nerds. And you’re going to heal faster because you now understand exactly why these problems happen.
Get Neuropathy Treatment Today
If you suffer from neuropathy, contact Doyle Chiropractic at (864) 881-4221 to schedule an appointment. Our dedicated team is here to help you achieve lasting pain relief and better health. Visit our clinic in Simpsonville, SC, and experience the difference our specialized care can make.