Cervical osteochondrosisis a disease that is a process of malnutrition or gradual destruction of the cartilaginous tissue of the intervertebral joints and discs of the neck.
How to carry your head on your shoulders with ease?
If it is difficult for you to turn your head when someone calls you on the street, if your neck literally cannot stand and causes you only pain, then it is time to be examined for osteochondrosis.
It is the cervical part that is most susceptible to injury, as it is the most mobile and at the same time has a weak muscular corset.The body creates a large load on small moving vertebrae.And the spinal canal itself is quite narrow.It easily pinches with any pressure on it.
Thousands of people every day feel a heaviness in the back of the head or numbness in the hands.And, not realizing the danger, they call such physiological manifestations fatigue, and sometimes a common cold.The neck area contains many blood vessels and nerve endings.In osteochondrosis, the vertebral artery is compressed, which provides nutrition to the cerebellum, medulla oblongata, and posterior parts of the brain.As a result, the coordination of a person's movements becomes ineffective, the sense of balance can be lost, vision decreases, hearing deteriorates, and sometimes this phenomenon leads to a stroke.
Fact.According to WHO statistics, people aged 30 to 40 are increasingly suffering from cervical osteochondrosis.Doctors explain this trend with a massive decrease in physical activity.And the prevalence of this disease in industrialized countries is equal to 60-80%.
Syndromes and symptoms of osteochondrosis
- Stenosis (narrowing syndrome of the spinal canal): compression of spinal cord vessels by herniated intervertebral discs, osteophytes (growths of bone tissue) or thickened spinal ligament.As a result, blood circulation in the affected area is impaired.A person begins to feel restricted and experiences noticeable pain in the cervical spine.Numbness and tingling of the upper and lower extremities are found
- Radicular syndrome: compression of the nerve roots by the intervertebral disc.This leads to a headache expressed in pain, burning or pulsating impulses, sometimes the sensations are similar to the symptoms of hypertension.In this syndrome, speech defects and olfactory disturbances, hypertrophy of the facial muscles, damage to the sensitivity of the tongue muscles, and a feeling of "cloggedness" of the throat with lumps can occur.Breathing becomes interrupted, a person suffers from snoring, his nose is often, seemingly for no reason, "clogged".
- Vertebral artery syndrome: formed by compression (squeezing) of the vertebral artery.Its main companion is a throbbing pain.Attacks may involve the parietal, browbone, temporal, and occipital lobes.
- Cardiac syndrome:resembles angina attacks, but their duration is much longer.The pain is reflected in the diaphragm.This phenomenon in some individual cases is accompanied by high blood pressure and arrhythmia.
The main reasons for the development of the disease
- Metabolism problems;
- Lifestyle with low physical activity;
- Hereditary predisposition;
- Age-related ossification;
- Cramps in the muscles, as a result of which the posture changes;
- Lack of fluids and vitamins in the daily diet;
- Prolonged stay in an uncomfortable position, which increases the pressure on the discs and the spine;
- Excess weight or load on the spine due to wearing heels;
- All types of spine injuries;
- Regular weight lifting;
- Autoimmune diseases (a process of self-destruction of the immune system) that lead to degeneration of cartilage tissue;
- Stress that leads to muscle spasms and impaired blood flow to the intervertebral discs;
- Hypothermia.
Diagnosis of cervical osteochondrosis
The doctor may make the initial diagnosis of "osteochondrosis of the cervicothoracic region" or simply the cervical region during the initial examination of the patient.The expert will determine:
- Human body type;
- Posture position;
- Line of spinous processes;
- Lateral contours of the cervix and angle of the shoulder blades;
- Localization of painful points and degree of pain;
- Range of spine flexibility
- Muscle relief.
All this together will tell you exactly how the disease progresses.The doctor will then order a series of examinations:
- Digital radiography;
- CT (computed tomography);
- MRI (magnetic resonance imaging);
- Doppler ultrasound of the main arteries of the brain: a special ultrasound sensor determines the state of the blood flow and vessel walls.
Methods of treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
The doctor will help you choose the most optimal solution to the problem.And he will suggest different methods of treatment: medication in combination with physiotherapy or he will prescribe an operation that spares your body.
Conservative treatment– This is primarily drug therapy.It relieves pain, relieves muscle tension and quells inflammation.For this purpose, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and analgesics are prescribed.The list of recipes also includes chondroprotectors to activate the regenerative processes in the cartilage tissue of the joint, as well as vitamins of group B and external preparations: gels and ointments containing NSAIDs.
Physiotherapy, in turn, saturates the nutrient medium of the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral disc and promotes cartilage regeneration.The doctor will also prescribe exercises for therapeutic gymnastics - to strengthen the muscle corset and develop the flexibility of the ligament apparatus.He can conduct an introductory lesson with you so that you can perform the exercises correctly on your own in the future.
Surgical treatmentIt is suitable when medication and physical intervention are unavoidable.People turn to him if the patient's spinal canal has become catastrophically narrow.The surgical intervention is called an anterior cervical discectomy.The surgeon immobilizes the affected spinal segment and removes the intervertebral hernia that is compressing the spinal nerve.Over time, the vertebrae between which the disc was removed fuse.This is called spondylodesis.For greater adhesion, a specialist can perform an operation with cell stabilization - i.e.the intervertebral space is filled with an artificial insert.
After 3-5 days, the operated patient is discharged from the hospital for outpatient treatment.Rehabilitation takes about 3 months on average and depends on the implant placed and the professional activity of the patient.
What is the best way to build a lifestyle for a person diagnosed with osteochondrosis of the neck?
The daily regimen should include mandatory walking, and jumping and running should be avoided.Spending time in a sitting position for a long time is contraindicated;swimming is useful - it not only strengthens muscle tone, but also relieves spasms that limit the body.In the evening it would be a good idea to take a hot shower (except for the period of treatment of the cervical spine during an exacerbation of the disease).It is also important to watch your diet.Eat foods rich in magnesium and calcium - nuts, dairy and seafood, legumes.You will have to give up alcohol.
Is it possible to visit the sauna during an exacerbation of osteochondrosis?
Warming is usually beneficial for the patient, but after intense burning you will need to avoid immersion in cold water.You should also not run in the cold.Otherwise, the disease will worsen.Cervical osteochondrosis is sensitive to any temperature changes, including climatic ones.For example, autumn coldness can negatively affect a person's well-being.
What complications can occur after cervical osteochondrosis?
If you do not start a course of treatment in time, when the first signs of the disease appear, then your neck may stop listening to you in the literal sense of the word.And the complications of this disease are quite serious.There is a risk of protrusion - the so-called "bulging" of the intervertebral disc outside the spine, which can subsequently take the form of a hernia.Nerve roots in the neck area can be injured.Or osteophytes (bony growths on the vertebrae) may occur.Complications often include muscle weakness or paresis, a condition where the head begins to hang sideways or forward.In this section, in the processes of the cervical vertebrae, there are vertebral arteries that supply blood to the brain.Violation of this blood circulation is one of the most serious phenomena.Reluctance to treat can lead to neuralgia, deafness and even loss of vision.But if you address the problem at an early stage of its development, the disease can be prevented.
Why do you need a Shants collar?
It is an orthopedic brace made of flexible material, which is used to immobilize the neck in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis.But you can't wear such a neck fixation device for a long time, because the muscles can weaken over time, and you will get used to involuntarily tilting your head to the side without additional support.The Shants collar prevents the vertebrae from moving and maintains the corrective effect after a massage session.It takes the weight of the head and distributes it evenly to the collarbone and base of the neck.At the same time, the head remains in the correct position.