Neck and back pain from old injury

[mamao5]

Last year in November while @ work i pulled a case from a shelf approx 12 foot high in the freezer and stumbled. It fell and landed on my chest and right shoulder almost knocking me to the floor. I went to see the doctor who had me stay @ work but do no heavy lifting. They brought in someone to help. Between 6-8 weeks ago I started noticing pain in my left shoulder. It started, I beleive, after i had a heavy lifting day @ work or lots of paperwork. Around 5 weeks ago it became constant. The pain stays in the spot and the radius of pain is about the size of a softball. When I sleep I often wake from it hurting.If I lift pans out of one sink into another it hurts down and up my arm. Now I have been having pains into my back and pain in my left shoulder and neck. The original doctor never did an mri or x-ray and my doctor hasn't either. My Dr. acted like it was no big deal, but it is affecting my work. I am a supervisor and a lot is expected. I just don't want to reinjure myself . She wants to send me for physical therapy. Is this the best course of action.

[mamao5]

Basically my Dr. said lift your arm up, and i did. She had said to show her where the constant pain was and then how far back I could move my arm. She then said i have limited mobility and it was tendenitous(? spell sorry). I don't want it to be anything but something tells me she is off. I did see a work comp doctor 3 times back in November when the accident occurred. I had hoped she would do an x-ray and go from there. Should I explain it all to the physical therapist or just work with them and see? I don't have an appointment for 5 weeks with my reg Dr. once therapy is done. Thanks for your help!

[kittyluv1]

Did the doctor give you a provisional diagnosis based on his medical exam?  Referral to physical therapy could be beneficial, but only if they are treating the appropriate areas.
If your pain was confined to the shoulder, it is possible that you are dealing with an unresolved muscle strain/sprain or bursitis.
The fact that your pain is also evident in your neck and causing arm pain could mean that your cervical spine has been affected.  Degenerative disc disease is a normal process of the wear and tear on our spine as we age, but can be increased secondary to repetitive movement.
It is difficult to assess whether your current symptoms can be directly related to your injury in November.  Is this a work comp injury?  
It would be beneficial to get baseline x-rays of the cervical spine and the shoulder to determine if there are any structural changes or bony abnormalities.  Additional diagnostic testing appears to be indicated to pinpoint the source of your symptoms.
Discuss the situation with your treating physician on your next followup exam.
Hopefully he will authorize the appropriate tests.
Post with an update and any additional questions/concerns you may have.
Best wishes ---