Osteochondrosis- This is a disease of the spine, or more precisely, its ligamentous apparatus.
Simply put, a violation of metabolism in the intervertebral cartilage.
The name osteochondrosis comes from the Greek words osteon - "bone" and chondros - "cartilage". The essence of osteochondrosis is a dystrophic process in the bone and cartilage, followed by their aging. The osteochondrosis of the spine in the classic medical sense is a degenerative lesion of the intervertebral disc and reactive changes from adjacent bodies of the spine. It is generally acknowledged that everything begins with disk malfunctions, but pain syndrome already occurs due to the neurological complications of this process.
There is an opinion that osteochondrosis is a disease, it occurs as a result of the effects of many factors - both hereditary and acquired. People begin to feel manifestations of osteochondrosis more often after 35 years. The development and deterioration of the osteochondrosis of the spine is facilitated by the macro- and its microtrauma, static and dynamic overload, as well as vibrations.
A useful, optimal load on beads and intervertebral discs is when we hold the spine in its natural position, which is conceived for us by nature. When this position changes, there is an improper distribution of load on the back, which leads to a cartilage change in excessive pressure sites.
This can be caused:
Most often, some factors lead to the development of osteochondrosis. A certain place between them is occupied by stress, hypothermia, adverse weather conditions (low temperature in combination with high humidity), various chemicals that enter the body with food and breathing. People with an excessive body mass. The causes of the development of osteochondrosis can be congenital deficiency of connective tissue (weakness of the ligamentous apparatus), a hormonal disease, autoimmune disease, trophic disorders in the joints, etc.
Osteochondrosis- degradation and destruction of intervertebral discs. Osteochondrosis which is the cause of back pain in 80% of cases.
The mechanism of the appearance of pain can simplify this way: the intervertebral disc does not resist the load and its extension is formed. About the intervertebral disc are nervous processes, vessels and spinal cord. Disk hernia, affecting any of the nerve processes causes its inflammation, which leads to pain.
The cervical spine osteochondrosis is distinguished by a variety of symptoms. There is an unpleasant sensation in the hand, spreading from the shoulder and forearm on the outer surface of the shoulder and forearm on the fingers, numbness of this area, an increase or decrease in sensitivity, sometimes you have to get up at night and cook your wrist muscles. The pain can be acute, cut and associated with a feeling of electric current. Often the pain intensifies with a minimal load on the arm; Some patients are unable to walk in a coat - it press on their shoulders and looks extremely heavy. Pain intensifies with coughing, sneezing, strain, and especially when bending on the healthy side. Disordishes motor disorders can occur, most often in the hands, especially on the fingers. As a rule, 2-3 spinal cord spine is affected.
Sometimes numbness, burning, tingling in the hands or feet are observed, limiting the mobility of upper or lower extremities and impaired sensitivity. The appearance of "cervical migraine" indicates the vertebral artery lesion. Blood circulation in the stem and occipital parts of the brain concerns. A persistent symptom is a headache. The pain usually appears in the back of the head and spreads to the parietal-octum region. The pain is persistent and intensifies with neck movements, most often in the morning. Older people often lose consciousness with a sharp twist of their head, which is preceded by dizziness, noise in the ear, a decrease in visual acuity and hearing, nausea and vomiting.
Sometimes there is heart pain - prolonged, pressing. With osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, especially in old and old age, there are often changes in soft tissue in the form of seals. These seals are determined in the neck muscles, in the area of the cervical vertebrae processes (often vertebra VII), the wrist, the elbow joints, in the supra- and subclavian fossin. With age, the cicatrial seals in the palm of your hand are increasingly revealed, due to a change in the tendon structure.
The manifestations of osteochondrosis of the spine are extremely varied, but not one of the symptoms is strictly specific. Basically, the symptoms are determined by the localization (location) of the painful process and the degree of its severity. Pain in the thoracic spine is the main symptom. After physical exercise or long stay in a position, the pain intensifies, which forces patients to change the position even at night. A burning, painful or dull pain in the scapula and inter -space space is very characteristic. Patients complain about the feeling of "iron ticks". Drinking the bead processes is painful. Pain can spread to various internal organs.
Diagnosis of osteochondrosis
The diagnosis of osteochondrosis is performed by a neuropathologist, orthopedic. To confirm the diagnosis of osteochondrosis, the doctor detects the symptoms of the disease, the history of the development of the disease and examines the patient. When examining patients with osteochondrosis, spinal cord bending (scoliosis), the presence of painful spots and strained muscle on the sides of the spine is usually detected.
To clarify the diagnosis of osteochondrosis, a radiological examination of the spine, calculated tomography or nuclear magnetic resonance of the spine is performed.
How to treat osteochondrosis
Currently, there are many ways to treat osteochondrosis, from taking drugs and completing surgeries. Of course, there is a lot of controversy about these methods and their effect on the body. When choosing a treatment method, you should pay attention to some points.
For example, if you are to be treated with medication, you should pay attention to the fact that most of them adversely affect your stomach and liver, so it is only important to contact experienced specialists who will choose the most frugal drug therapy.
When choosing a manual therapist, it is desirable to be narrower, as a non -professional, which is now quite a lot, can bring you to a wheelchair. When choosing therapeutic exercises, it is necessary to pay attention to ensure that the exercises do not cause load on the back, but only develop the back muscles. Try to do all the exercises slowly, without unexpected movements.
To prevent osteochondrosis and exclude its irritation, it is advisable to observe some rules that will reduce the load on your back:
But not everything is so scary. For those who do not have this disease yet, there are a number of preventive measures, the rest have a whole arsenal of funds to treat this disease.
Prevention of osteochondrosis
As you know, it is easier to prevent the disease than to treat it. Prevention of osteochondrosis is needed for everyone - both children and adults. Moreover, there is nothing complicated in it, and preventing osteochondrosis requires no special effort. The first and perhaps most important point is the health of the spine. To do this, the world of advice constantly advises playing sports or at least gymnastics, which will help develop the spinal muscles and improve blood circulation. Next is to constantly monitor the behavior and walking, not to trace and not to stoop.
The ideal attitude is when the head and back are in the same vertical, the shoulders are directed, the shoulder blades do not stick, the chest is raised and the stomach is pulled. My Yoga teacher once said that the stomach is not visible because we eat a lot, but because we walk badly. How is it right? Imagine you pull you off the top of your head, and you are barely touching the floor socks. Practice such an exercise for a few weeks and soon you themselves will not notice that they have become the owner of a great attitude.
Also advisable to hang as often as possible on the horizontal bar, extending the spinal column and leaving it rest. Provide yourself such a dream in which your back will take the right position. Scientists' studies have shown that the ideal poses for the spine in the back. But at the same time, the mattress should be quite difficult for the spine to get a appropriate natural position. To do this, put an elastic roller under your feet. We advise you to buy an orthopedic mattress and a pillow and finally throw out the grandmother of the feather bed.
If you have a monotonous job sitting, always every two hours (the more often, the better) take a break. Relax, make some move your head and shoulders, go. If possible, go out into the fresh air. By the way, such vacations are legalized, and in the Labor Code they are allowed for people who work constantly on the computer.
We include a balanced, vitaminized food for prevention. Try to eat fish and seafood, nuts, legumes and various dairy products. Periodically get complex vitamins. With this, you will not allow a metabolic violation. Excess weight is a devastating load for the spine, so try not to heal.
Well, some words about prevention in children. It is necessary to monitor the child's behavior, do gymnastics or morning exercises (it will be more effective if you do it together). And yet, give priority to the school's back, not bags, because they are the backpack that balance the load on the back.