Osteochondrosis of the cervix: symptoms, causes, treatment

Dystrophic changes in the intervertebral discs are called osteochondrosis. This problem can occur in a person at any age; dysfunction of the intervertebral discs leads to the development of many serious accompanying problems. How to prevent the development of cervical osteochondrosis? What alternative medicines and therapies are used in treatment?

Cervical osteochondrosis - what is it

The cervical spine consists of 7 vertebrae and 8 paired nerve nodes. Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine develops against the background of degeneration of the intervertebral pulp into fibrous tissue. In this case, pathological changes affect the endings of nerve fibers and important vessels. Most often, the pathology affects the 7th and 8th vertebrae.

The disease is carefully disguised as other pathologies, manifested by attacks of headache and discomfort in the neck. Patients may complain of dizziness, nausea, and pressure problems. Most often, the disease is confused with cardiovascular problems.

Important! Often, against the background of vertebral problems, a person suddenly begins to lose consciousness, feels short of breath, and the tongue may become numb.

Cervical osteochondrosis is most often diagnosed in people after the age of 30, which is caused by the peculiarities of the human skeleton location, constant statistical and dynamic loads. The disease is growing at a new rate, recently, osteochondrosis also occurs in adolescents.

Causes of the disease

The development of osteochondrosis is influenced by physiological and pathological processes. They are closely related to each other, in medical practice they are always considered together.

Physiological changes are caused by irreversible processes related to the age of the spinal cartilage. They are located in the central part of the intervertebral disc, appearing as a pulp constriction by fibrous tissue. Discomfort occurs during irritation of nerve endings.

Pathological changes - in this case, the area of ​​inflammation extends beyond the cartilage tissue, causing severe irritation of the nerve endings, constriction of blood vessels. They arise against the background of poor nutrition, a sedentary lifestyle, appearing in adolescents and middle-aged people.

Important! In rare cases, osteochondrosis of the cervical spine may disappear on its own, or appear in the form of short-term episodes. The human body has many compensatory and protective functions, which for some time can neutralize pathological changes in cartilage.

Provocative factors:

• sedentary work, lack of regular physical activity;
• frequent forced stay in an uncomfortable position;
• overweight;
• nervous overload, stressful condition;
• neck and neck injuries;
• hypothermia.

The cause of osteochondrosis can be congenital anomalies, autoimmune diseases.

Key Features

Cervical osteochondrosis is not always manifested by pain in a specific part of the back, often the disease has a vague clinical picture.

The main symptoms are dizziness, migraines, sudden changes in blood pressure.

When urgent hospitalization is needed:

• numbness, loss of mobility of the facial muscles or shoulder girdle;
• growing headache, which is accompanied by a deterioration in general well-being;
• lack of coordination;
• loss of consciousness.

Pain in the back of the cervix often radiates to the shoulder girdle and upper limbs. A distinctive feature is that the pain syndrome is paroxysmal in nature, most often after waking up, sudden movements, during laughter, coughing and sneezing.

If osteochondrosis is in the initial stage, the pain subsides quickly, it is almost always accompanied by a crisis in the neck, the muscles become weak, the skin loses sensitivity.

Important! In case of pathological changes in the 6th vertebra, the pain syndrome can be noticed in the thumb, in case of damage to the 7th vertebra, it touches the middle finger.

Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in women appear later than in men - the average age is 50-55 years.

How osteochondrosis is associated with other diseases

Cervical osteochondrosis and blood pressure - the link between these pathologies has long been established. For osteochondrosis, it is precisely the sharp pressure drops during the day that are characteristic, persistent hypertension is not natural in this disease.

Increased pressure in osteochondrosis is associated with migraine, headache, pain in the arms, legs, chest. At the same time, the sensitivity of the skin in the collar region is significantly reduced, stress can provoke a pressure jump, prolonged stay in an uncomfortable position.

Cervical osteochondrosis and dizziness - occurs against the background of severe pain syndrome, impaired brain circulation and transmission of nerve signals, problems with the vestibular apparatus.

With osteochondrosis, non-systemic dizziness occurs more often - there is no feeling of rotating objects, but the person is very sick, it is difficult to stand on your feet.

Important! With frequent dizziness attacks, it is necessary to visit not only a neuropathologist, but also an ENT, in order to exclude the presence of pathological changes in the nasopharynx.

Headache accompanies osteochondrosis in almost 90% of cases. Occurs against the background of vascular spasms, pinchings of nerve endings, increased intracranial pressure. Manifested in different ways - pulsating, dull.

Headache attacks in osteochondrosis are similar to sensations in high blood pressure, angina pectoris, heart attack, stroke.

Panic attacks occur with osteochondrosis against the background of cerebral circulatory disorders. At the same time, a person experiences unreasonable fear, physical discomfort. The duration of the attack is from 2-3 minutes to an hour, they can be repeated several times a day. Panic attacks are accompanied by feeling of heavy head, incessant tears, apathy and lethargy. With severe seizures, you are required to take sedatives, visit a psychiatrist regularly.

Fear and depression occur with osteochondrosis on the background of constant pain, a forced change in the usual way of life.

Diagnostic methods

People with osteochondrosis may experience pain in the back of the head, chest, arms - such a vague picture of the disease significantly complicates the initial diagnosis.

Prevents timely diagnosis and uncontrolled taking of pain medication by humans. A person feels healthy without pain. He seeks medical help late, when irreversible processes develop in the tissues of the cervical joints.

Important! Only a neurologist deals with the treatment of osteochondrosis.

External examination is the identification of mobility and soreness in the neck. After that, the doctor prescribes X-rays in some projections and computed tomography. If a hernia is suspected, magnetic resonance imaging should be done. Doppler ultrasound is done to assess the condition of arteries and blood vessels.

Principles of Drug Treatment

Medication treatment aims to eliminate pain, inflammation, return to normal mobility and blood circulation.

Main groups of medicines:

• analgesics in the form of tablets and injections aim to eliminate the pain syndrome;
• non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and steroids;
• chondroprotectors help restore cartilage tissue;
• muscle relaxants relax muscles, are used as pain relievers - they contain glycerin, benzimidazole, have a long list of contraindications;
• vitamin complexes - should contain all vitamins of group B, D, E, retinol, ascorbic acid;
• artificial histamine analogues - help eliminate problems with the vestibular apparatus;
• means for external use in the form of gels, oils - help improve blood circulation, relieve spasms and pain, warm up, relieve pain.

Important! Vitamins contained in food are not enough to treat osteochondrosis.

Medications that improve cerebral circulation in cervical osteochondrosis are a mandatory component of therapy, they dilate blood vessels, improve blood flow. Nootropic drugs that improve metabolic processes in the brain, restore memory and thinking.

Osteochondrosis surgery is rarely used. Surgery is necessary for signs of upper extremity paralysis, acute disturbance of blood supply, and cerebral edema.

Additional treatments include massage, push-ups, manual therapy, dose withdrawal, relaxation techniques, and acupuncture.

How to treat osteochondrosis at home

Home treatment involves the regular implementation of special exercises, the use of special orthopedic equipment. As a supportive therapy, you can use traditional medicine prescriptions.

Shaka collar was created to eliminate tension in the back, to reduce stress, to strengthen the neck muscles. The head and neck are fixed in the right position, which allows you to get rid of insomnia, prevent the progression of pathological changes. You should wear a collar not all day, but 2-3 hours before bedtime.

Self-massage will help eliminate pain and cramps while massaging oils that improve blood flow. The procedure should be done while sitting, the posture is comfortable, relaxed. It is necessary to make strokes, circular rubbing, to touch not only the neck but also the shoulder girdle.

Important! With cervical osteochondrosis, any kind of heating is prohibited except a bath and sauna.

Healing baths relieve pain and inflammation well, they allow the spine to relax. Water procedures should be performed every other day, the course consists of 15-20 procedures.

Bath recipes:

1. Mix 150 g of chamomile and mint, the mixture creates 5 liters of boiling water. Leave the infusion for 2 hours, filter.
2. Take 20 g each of mint, lemon balm and birch leaves. The collection is prepared in 6 liters of boiling water, after 2 hours filtered.
3. To prepare a sage infusion, you will need 300 g of herbs and 5 liters of boiling water. The healing solution will be ready in 2 hours.

For oral administration, you can prepare an infusion of yarrow - this will help quickly eliminate inflammation, spasms and pain. Put 230 ml of boiling water 6 g of grass, leave in a closed container for an hour. Take 15 ml 3 times a day.

A solution of 15 g of sea salt and 1 liter of water helps to cope with osteochondrosis. Bring the mixture to a boil, cool completely. In the composition, moisten the natural fabric, place it on the back of the neck.

Possible complications

With timely diagnosis and proper treatment, cervical osteochondrosis persists without any particular complication. Otherwise, severe pathological changes develop that can cause disability.

Why is cervical osteochondrosis dangerous?

• vertebral artery syndrome - functional and organic changes caused by impaired blood circulation to the brain;
• high blood pressure, arrhythmia;
• numbness, weakness, atrophy of the muscles of the upper limbs;
• elongation, hernia;
• VSD;
• neurological disorders.

Physiotherapy exercises for osteochondrosis

Exercise therapy for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is able to restore nutrition to damaged tissues, restore blood circulation.

During corrective gymnastics, it is forbidden to rotate the head hard, to make sharp turns. Only imitation of such movements is allowed. You can do a series of exercises no longer than 2 minutes - prolonged loads can lead to a complication of osteochondrosis.

An effective set of exercises for cervical osteochondrosis was created by Shishon. The principle is that all movements should be done smoothly, each position should be fixed for 15-30 seconds. During gymnastics, there should be no painful sensations, each exercise should be repeated 5 times.

Description of exercises:

1. Sit up straight, tilt your head to the right. When muscle tension appears, adjust the position. Make 5 slopes on each side.
2. Head and back turns are done by analogy with the previous exercise.
3. Extend the chin alternately to the left and right shoulder. The back is straight, you can not round it.
4. Left and right head bends, in each position extend for 30 seconds.
5. Keep making side turns, but use extra wings. When turning to the right, the right hand should be on the left shoulder, and vice versa.
6. Close your palms, raise your arms above your head, make sideways turns.
7. Straighten your arms, pull them sideways and slightly back, extend your chin forward.

Preventive measures

Preventing osteochondrosis consists of simple steps, if done regularly, serious health problems can be avoided. Especially prevention is necessary for the elderly and those who spend a lot of time sitting.

How to prevent osteochondrosis:

• take a hot shower every day for at least 10 minutes;
• visit the spa, sauna regularly to eliminate spasms and tightness in the neck;
• sleeps on an orthopedic pillow and a separate mattress;
• do a small heat for five minutes every hour while sitting.

The best sports to prevent osteochondrosis are swimming, yoga, aerobic exercises, special gymnastics to strengthen the cervical muscles.

Persons at risk are prohibited from running, jumping or body building. Critical weight is 10 kg, weights should be carried in two hands. Furthermore, you can use a corset that protects the spine.

Sergei Bubnovsky describes well the preventive measures for osteochondrosis. In his book, you can discover which back pain is dangerous, how to restore health without injections and corsets, and find a range of specific exercises.

Osteochondrosis of the cervix is ​​a disease that can affect anyone. Timely diagnosis and prevention, a healthy and active lifestyle will help avoid the development of serious pathological changes in the spine, will give you good health and excellent mood.