Scapular winging is a condition that affects the shoulder blades.

The shoulder blades usually rest flat against the back of the chest wall. Scapular winging occurs when a shoulder blade sticks out.

While the condition is rare, it’s usually painful and makes day-to-day activities, such as lifting grocery bags or brushing your teeth, difficult.

Some symptoms of scapular winging may be pain and discomfort in shoulders, back and neck, drooping of the shoulders and fatigue.

Along with traumatic or repetitive motion injuries, scapular winging is almost always caused by an injury to one of the three main nerves that controls the neck, back and arms. These three nerves are; long thoracic nerve which pulls the scapula forward towards the thorax, dorsal scapular nerve which helps in elevation and adduction of the scapula toward the spinal column and the spinal accessory nerve which helps in controlling
the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles for the action of shrugging and turning the head.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, please contact your physician for an electrodiagnostic study to determine the correct diagnosis.