Osteochondrosis is a disease of the skeletal system characterized by changes in cartilage tissue. Due to the development of the disease, a person's working capacity decreases, blood circulation and the integrity of the vertebral discs are disturbed. Most often, the disease develops as a result of obesity, physical inactivity, time spent in front of the computer or driving a car.
Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, as it develops, is characterized by the following symptoms:
Neck pain with cervical osteochondrosis
- Continuous headache. Patients with osteochondrosis primarily experience headaches, which are aggravated by sudden neck rotation or sudden movement of the head.
- Neck pain that may radiate to the shoulder area. Often appears in the morning, immediately after sleep, decreases or disappears completely after warming up the muscles of the neck.
- Cervical lumbago, characterized by sharp pain in the neck, hardening of the muscles in the affected area, and limited mobility.
- Pain in the breastbone or gallbladder. Patients most often suspect that they have pathology of the cardiovascular system, but taking nitroglycerin does not relieve pain. When cervical osteochondrosis is manifested by pain in the breastbone, patients complain of a decrease in muscle strength of the arms.
- In almost all patients with osteochondrosis, you may hear a characteristic cracking and squeaking sound if you ask a person to tilt their head in different directions.
- Hoarseness of the voice.
- Osteochondrosis of the neck can be manifested by numbness of the tongue, fingertips (a symptom occurs as a result of compression of the nerves and vessels near the intervertebral discs.
- Increased blood pressure.
- Paresis of the limbs, decrease in muscle strength of the limbs.
The cause of the above symptoms is damage to connective tissue and intervertebral discs with their subsequent deformation. As a result of pathological processes, the discs become overgrown with bone formations, osteophytes are formed, which compress and damage blood vessels and nerve pathways.
Stages of the disease
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine develops in several stages. The more the patient's disease progresses, the more severe the symptoms become, the more severe the complications of the disease become.
Grade 1 cervical osteochondrosis is characterized by damage to the nucleus pulposus of the intervertebral disc. When metabolism is disrupted in the body, the nucleus pulposus, which is a structure of biopolymeric compounds, is destroyed. At first, it loses water, gradually dries up and therefore decreases in size. Its strength decreases considerably and it becomes more difficult for the spine to cope with physical activity. At this stage of the disease, a person does not feel pain, does not seek medical help. If you start to identify osteochondrosis at this stage, the patient will not need drug treatment.
Degree 2 cervical osteochondrosis is characterized by damage to the fibrosus ring of the intervertebral disc. Cracks and tears appear on the surface of the disc due to a strong and uneven load on the spine. Due to the fact that the fibrosus ring becomes thinner, the nucleus is completely squeezed into the resulting tears and cracks, thereby expanding them. As a result, the disc increases in size, begins to protrude beyond the edges of the vertebrae. This phenomenon is called disc protrusion. 2nd degree cervical osteochondrosis is the stage of the disease when a person first experiences pain.
Grade 3 cervical osteochondrosis is characterized by the formation of a hernia. The annulus fibrosus not only becomes thinner, but breaks, so that the nucleus pulposus “flows” into the subglottic space, forming a herniated disc. As a result of the development of the process, all surrounding tissues suffer - ligaments and muscles, nerves and blood vessels.
Over time, the skeletal system of the vertebrae changes: the edges of the vertebrae change shape, become ribbed and even sharp. The muscles around the altered bone system involuntarily contract, limiting the mobility of the spine. All nerve fibers passing through the spinal cord are impaired, the conduction of nerve impulses from the brain to organs and tissues is disturbed. It is important that the symptoms of osteochondrosis appear depending on the location of the osteochondrosis.
Grade 4 cervical osteochondrosis is characterized by degenerative spinal reconstruction. After destructive processes in the body, recovery processes begin to prevail. The duration of the fourth stage is about a year. During this time, the nature of the bone growth in the deformed vertebra changes. The bone begins to grow in width, which increases the area of the vertebra. These growths in medicine are called osteophytes. Thanks to them, the mobility of the injured spine is reduced, and the processes of its destruction are suspended. Over time, the sedentary vertebra completely becomes a static bone pillar.
And if the pain syndrome subsides, the pinched nerves and blood vessels remain in place, they are compressed not only by the discs and vertebrae, but also by the formed osteophytes. These processes must be properly treated in order to prevent the consequences of the disease.
Complications of cervical osteochondrosis
The main consequences of the development of cervical osteochondrosis are:
- Vascular disorders (compression of the arteries);
- Formation of hernias of varying severity;
- Spinal cord injury;
- Formation of osteophytes;
- Restricted mobility of the spine.
What complications of cervico-thoracic osteochondrosis can cause? The most dangerous consequence is the deterioration of the blood supply to the brain. Due to the compression of the arteries, less blood enters the brain and gray matter is poorly supplied with oxygen.
If a patient develops vertebral artery syndrome - when the main pathway for blood to the brain is pinched, the person experiences dizziness and fainting.
In addition to impaired consciousness, patients with osteochondrosis of the cervical spine have impaired vision and hearing. In addition to numbness in the limbs, it is possible to develop Dupuytren's syndrome, which is characterized by stiffening of the hands. As a result of the development of the syndrome, the mobility of the fingers is lost.
Hypertension and vegetative-vascular dystonia (VVD) are considered frequent complications. A cosmetic defect that appears as a result of the development of osteochondrosis is the formation of the withers (“mound” of cartilage tissue at the back of the head).
Processing methods
The choice of treatment for cervical osteochondrosis depends on the stage of the disease. The medical treatment consists in the prescription by the doctor of non-steroidal drugs, analgesics and antispasmodics. The dosage of the drug is adjusted at the discretion of the doctor.
Physiotherapy is often prescribed to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical vertebrae. With the help of exercises, you can not only eliminate pain, but also reduce inflammation, strengthen the back muscles and reduce the risk of complications.
Themassage has a general strengthening effect. After a massage, a patient with osteochondrosis will lose tension and pain, and the blood supply will increase.
When drugs are not helpful, doctors should order surgery. During surgery, doctors remove parts of the intervertebral disc that compress the nerve roots.
The best treatment is a combination of several methods. Medical treatment should be combined with massage, exercise therapy and gymnastics.
Some doctors believe that acupuncture and herbal remedies are an effective method of treatment.
Prevention
To reduce pain and prevent the development of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, you can use simple methods. To begin with, each person should be constantly in a position that relieves the load on the spine. It is necessary to remember the exercises that knead the muscles and support the metabolic processes of the spine. To obtain a positive result, it is necessary to follow the recommendations given by the doctor.
Main recommendations:
- Distribute physical activity evenly across the spine. To do this, limit vertical loads, avoid sudden movements and exercises that can damage the spine. You must avoid falling or jumping from great heights.
- Do not carry heavy objects while stretching your arms out in front of you. Before picking up an object from the ground, you should not lean forward, but squat.
- Do not move objects with one hand, it is advisable to distribute the load on both limbs. If this is not possible, you should place the load in a rolling suitcase or backpack.
- If you have to carry a heavy load, you should put on a wide belt or purchase a special corset before working out.
- Wear comfortable shoes.
- The best prevention of the disease is swimming, regular gymnastics, taking a contrast shower.
- Stressful situations should be avoided.
- You have to remember the rules of a balanced diet.
- Get rid of bad habits.
It should be understood that it is much easier to prevent a disease than to cure it long and persistently. If the operation is not necessary in the early stages of the disease, the later stages of osteochondrosis require surgery.