Cervical osteochondrosisis a disease that is a process of malnutrition or gradual destruction of the cartilaginous tissue of the intervertebral joints and neck discs.
How to carry your head on your shoulders easily?
If you find it difficult to turn your head when someone calls you on the street, if your neck literally cannot handle it and only causes pain, then it's time to check 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 the small movable vertebrae.And the spinal canal itself is quite narrow.It is easily compressed under any pressure.
Thousands of people feel heaviness in the back of their neck or tingling in their hands every day.And, not knowing the danger, they call these physiological manifestations fatigue and sometimes the 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 feeling 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 by a massive decrease in physical activity.And the prevalence of this disease in industrialized countries is 60-80%.
Osteochondrosis syndromes and symptoms
- Stenosis (spinal canal narrowing syndrome): compression of the vessels of the spinal cord by herniated intervertebral disc, osteophytes (growths of bone tissue) or thickened spinal ligament.As a result, blood circulation in the affected area is disturbed.The person begins to feel embarrassed and experiences noticeable pain in the cervical spine.Numbness and tingling are detected in the upper and lower extremities
- radicular syndrome: compression of the nerve roots by the intervertebral disc.This leads to headaches, expressed in aching, burning or pulsating impulses, sometimes the sensations are similar to the symptoms of hypertension.With this syndrome, speech defects and smell disorders, hypertrophy of facial muscles, damage to the sensitivity of the tongue muscles and a feeling of “clogging” the throat with lumps can occur.Breathing becomes intermittent, the person snores and their nose often, apparently for no reason, becomes “blocked”.
- Vertebral artery syndrome: formed by compression (squeezing) of the vertebral artery.Its main companion is throbbing pain.Attacks can involve the parietal lobe, the area above the eyebrows, the temporal and occipital lobes.
- Cardiac syndrome:It resembles angina attacks, but its duration is much longer.The pain is reflected in the diaphragm.This phenomenon, in some individual cases, is accompanied by hypertension and arrhythmia.
The main reasons for the development of the disease
- Metabolism problems;
- Lifestyle with low physical activity;
- Hereditary predisposition;
- Age-related ossification;
- Tightening of the muscles, resulting in changes in posture;
- Lack of liquids and vitamins in the daily diet;
- Staying in an uncomfortable position for a long time, which increases pressure on the discs and spine;
- Excess weight or tension in the spine due to wearing heels;
- All types of spinal injuries;
- Regular lifting of weights;
- Autoimmune diseases (self-destruction process of the immune system), which lead to the degeneration of cartilaginous tissue;
- Stress, which 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 specialist will determine:
- Human body type;
- Postural position;
- Line of spinous processes;
- Cervical lateral contours and shoulder blade angle;
- Location of painful points and level of pain;
- Spinal Flexibility Band
- Muscle relief.
All this together will tell you exactly how the disease progresses.Next, the doctor will order a series of tests:
- Digital radiography;
- CT (computed tomography);
- magnetic resonance imaging (magnetic resonance imaging);
- Doppler ultrasound of the main arteries of the brain: a special ultrasound sensor determines the state of blood flow and vessel walls.
Treatment method for cervical osteochondrosis
The doctor will help you choose the ideal solution to the problem.And he will offer a variety of treatment methods: medications in combination with physiotherapy, or prescribe an operation that is gentle on your body.
Conservative treatment– This is, first of all, drug therapy.Relieves pain, relieves muscle tension and extinguishes inflammation.For this purpose, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and analgesics are prescribed.The list of prescriptions also includes chondroprotectors to activate regenerative processes in the cartilaginous tissue of the joint, as well as B vitamins and external preparations: gels and ointments containing NSAIDs.
Physiotherapy, in turn, saturates the nutrient medium of the cartilaginous tissue of the intervertebral disc and promotes cartilage regeneration.The doctor will also prescribe therapeutic gymnastics exercises - to strengthen the muscular corset and develop the flexibility of the ligamentous apparatus.He can conduct an introductory class with you so that you can perform the exercises correctly on your own in the future.
Surgical treatmentIt is appropriate if medication and physical intervention are unavoidable.People resort to it if the patient's spinal canal has become catastrophically narrow.The surgical intervention was called anterior cervical discectomy.The surgeon immobilizes the affected spinal segment and removes the intervertebral hernia, which is pressing on the spinal nerve.Over time, the vertebrae between which the disc was removed fuse together.This is called spondylodesis.For greater adhesion, the specialist can perform an operation with cage stabilization - that is, 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 on average around 3 months and depends on the implant installed and the patient's professional activity.
What is the best way to build a lifestyle for a person diagnosed with cervical osteochondrosis?
The daily routine should include mandatory walking, avoiding jumping and running.Sitting for a long time is contraindicated;Swimming is beneficial - not only does it strengthen muscle tone, it also relieves spasms that restrict the body.In the evening, it would be a good idea to take a warm bath (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 go to the sauna during an exacerbation of osteochondrosis?
Warming generally benefits the patient, but after intense vaporization you should avoid immersion in cold water.You shouldn't run into the cold either.Otherwise, the disease will worsen.Cervical osteochondrosis is sensitive to any temperature changes, including climatic ones.For example, autumn cold can negatively affect a person's well-being.
What complications can arise after cervical osteochondrosis?
If you do not start treatment on time, then when the first signs of the disease appear, 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 “protrusion” of the intervertebral disc beyond the spine, which can subsequently take the form of a hernia.The nerve roots in the neck region can be injured.Or osteophytes (bone growths on the vertebrae) may appear.Complications often include weakening of the muscles or paresis - a condition in which the head begins to tilt to the side or forward.In this section, in the processes of the cervical vertebrae, there are vertebral arteries that supply blood to the brain.Interruption of this blood circulation is one of the most serious phenomena.Reluctance to undergo treatment can cause neuralgia, deafness and even loss of vision.But if you address the problem at an early stage in its development, the disease can be prevented.
Why do you need a Shants collar?
It is an orthopedic belt made of flexible material, which is used to immobilize the neck in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis.But you cannot use this device to fix your neck for a long time, as the muscles can weaken over time and you will get used to involuntarily tilting your head to the sides without additional support.The Shants collar does not allow movement of the vertebrae and maintains the corrective effect after a massage session.It takes the weight of the head and distributes it evenly across the collarbone and base of the neck.At the same time, the head remains in the correct position.