Question
I was rough housing with my older brother a few weeks ago (we are both in our older 20's) and he picked me up and threw me onto a couch, it wasn't hard but as he tossed me down I heard my upper back do a bunch of cracking and popping, my back was pretty sore after and the next day my upper back right on my spine was very tender and felt like it was bruised or something. It continued to be sore and it felt like there was a lot of pressure in my spine, like I needed to crack it, I went to the chiropractor and he did some realigning and massage, it felt better for about 2 weeks, then at work 2 days ago I was leaning over to grab something and felt a twinge in my upper back, same area. Now once again it is the same soreness all over again, this time I even had some pain on the left side of my back right below my shoulder blade when taking a deep breath in. What's going on? Is this only my muscles or something worse? Thanks!

Answer
Sounds like it could be a rib injury. The area where the rib meets the spine is called the costovertebral joint and can be a source of pain as well. Go back to the chiropractor and have him re-evaluate. X-rays or a CT scan may be in order to rule out a possible fracture. Take it easy for a while and let this heal up before getting back into more physical activity. Rib injuries respond pretty well to conservative care, rest and limited activity.