I am a 56 year old female and recently (couple days ago) noticed a hard, painless, non-moveable, marble sized lump on the right side of my collarbone. I walk daily and exercise using one and two pound. I have a small soft lump on my left side below my collarbone and it doesn't hurt what could it be? Michael Sparacino answered 37 years experience Family Medicine See below: Any lumps should be examined by your family doctor to make sure they're not dangerous. Dec 29, 2009 What could cause lump above collarbone? Pumpkin, what have you found out? I have a soft puffy lump above my right collar bone. Some blood tests on me and they were fine,the doctor said.
If you find a lump above or on your clavicle, it’s totally normal to bounce to cataclysmic conclusions. Whenever we detect anything even marginally abnormal with our bodies, the natural knee jerk attitude is to panic for the sake of our health – even if painstakingly unnecessary. The fact is, many unexplained lumps are totally harmless and not worth frenzying over.
But in rare cases, a clavicle lump could be the sign of something more unfavorable. So whilst it’s important to remain placid and astute, airing the side of caution and understanding potential consequences is equally crucial too. Getting expert advice and examination is key, allowing you to achieve a systematic diagnosis with usable treatment options presented. If you’d like to discover more about causes and symptoms of clavicle lumps, keep reading.
What’s the Main Cause for a Lump on Clavicle?
A technical term for your collarbone, the clavicle acts as a connection between your sternum and shoulder blades. There are many reasons unexpected bony lumps can betide this section of bone, some more commonplace than others.
Lump On Collarbone Doctor
It’s no private secret how many accidents can happen involving the clavicle, some of which have serious repercussions. Therefore, one of the primary causes of a lump on your clavicle is impulsive injury or brute trauma resulting in breakages or fractures. If you’ve suffered a particularly nasty fall and experience collarbone pain a period later, it’s essential you visit your doctor immediately. Full breakages are pretty evident at the scene, but a fracture may be more challenging to identify particularly if pain and swelling doesn’t occur right away.
As a result of such injuries, a corresponding lump can show. Whether due to your clavicle being forcibly separated into multiple shards from a severe break or a slight misalignment during a fracture, lumps can loom from major and minor injuries. Undergoing an X-ray is key to confirm this, and a CT (computerized tomography) scan may also be requested.
Is a Hard Bony Lump on Clavicle Always From Injury?
Whilst undoubtedly the most common reason hard bony lumps on your clavicle may spring, traumatic injury isn’t the only culprit for lumps of this type. Unfortunately, cancerous tumors also retain a relatively hard, rigid structure, and can subsequently develop on the clavicle as a result of bone cancer – or as secondary tumors spreading from another primary source.
If you’re utterly certain you’ve not experienced any breed of trauma and your clavicle bony lump is definitely not because of injury, it’s crucial to accept professional examination. Whilst there’s always a shot any tumors present could be benign (non cancerous), it’s vital you receive an accurate report for treatment and prognosis scope.
Can Infections Cause Clavicle Lumps?
In short, yes they can! Whilst not quite as common as other embodiments of infection, bone infections can cause intermittent lumpy masses to develop within the clavicle area or between clavicle bones. Professionally referred to as osteomyelitis, such bone infections typically start following a surgical procedure because of injury.
If abandoned untreated, this condition can manifest into a weakening issue for the sufferer. However, there are multiple treatment regimens available, with surgery to extract infected tissue a feasible option if necessary.
What Causes a Lump Above My Clavicle?
If noticing a lump closer to the top of your clavicle or situated near the neck area, it’s unlikely to be bone-related like preceding causes we’ve delved into. Typically, whilst commonly correlated with the sides of the neck, inflamed lymph nodes can cause lumpy structures to occur lower down on the body – even stretching as far as the clavicle.
Swollen lymph nodes are predominantly a result of bacterial infections, occurring via your body’s immune system attempting to fight and defend against the infection. In order for your nodes to settle down and revert to their introductory size and shape, antibiotics are likely needed to treat the veiled infection. Then once your white blood cells have barely anything leftover to ward off, your lymphatic nodes will shrink to normal.
However, if sensing your nodes are chronically inflamed and aren’t recovering independently, it could be a sign of something more sinister like lymphoma. So, just because the primary lump site appears closest to your clavicle, this doesn’t mean your neck and throat area can be disregarded. As always, visiting your doctor for a proficient diagnosis is key.
What Are Clavicle Lump Symptoms?
As with basically any lump or bump, the specific associated symptoms solely depend on the root cause. Every category of lump is different, and will produce alternative residuals.
If your lump is a result of fracture or breakage, pain is an almost guaranteed aftereffect. You’re likely to also develop bruising and swelling around the broken scene, and even a slight sagged look to the shoulder closest to the break. Movement is likely to be strained and somewhat hampered, and regular painkillers are certain to be arbitrary.
However, if your lump is a result of a bone infection or broadened lymph nodes, other symptoms will be observed. Feverish emotions, chills and swelling are strongly likely to occur, and you may even experience frequent night sweats until all traces of infection have been eliminated.