Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine

Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is a pathological condition in which degenerative changes occur in bone and cartilage tissue.

Dystrophy of the intervertebral discs becomes dry and hard after the age of 30, at the age of 40-45.

The spinal column has 7 cervical vertebrae consisting of a body, a process and a bony back;In the center of the vertebra is a hole where the spinal cord is located.Individual elements of the spine are connected to each other using intervertebral discs formed by a nucleus, a fibrous ring and a layer - a hyaline plate (cartilage).The cervical vertebra, which has the smallest thickness of discs, fits tightly together;The muscles in the neck region are very poorly developed, as a result of regular exercise, disc displacement, makeup displacement can occur, which compresses blood vessels and nerve bags.

The disease goes through several stages in its development, thus the spine undergoes pathological changes:

Grade 1 osteochondrosis

It is characterized by the destruction of intervertebral discs.Cracks form in the fibrous ring, the strength and flexibility of the disc is disturbed, and the height of the nerve roots decreases due to compression.A characteristic aching pain appears.Sometimes there may be no such pain at stage 1 (princlinal), and osteochondrosis occurs with moderate discomfort in the neck region.

2nd degree osteochondrosis

If osteochondrosis of the 1st class is not treated or not treated, a chronic condition, which is the osteochondrosis of the 2nd class, occurs.The pain becomes constant, destruction and compression of the intervertebral disc continues and causes slight dislocation of the cervical vertebrae.Falling head syndrome with cervical osteochondrosis may develop at this stage.This syndrome is characterized by severe pain and the person has to support the head in a stable position to reduce the pain.

3rd degree osteochondrosis

The fibrous ring is almost destroyed, which leads to complications of osteochondrosis - protrusion (sharpening) of the intervertebral disc or intervertebral hernia.In the 3rd stage of osteochondrosis, the intensity of pain can decrease, because there is no affected cartilage tissue in the intervertebral disc, and therefore the nerve roots are not pinched, the pain does not go away completely.

Causes of cervical osteochondrosis

With age, the core of the intervertebral disc loses its moisture reserves and becomes less elastic.Metabolism slows down significantly after 50 years, recovery processes in discs with poor blood supply.At a young age, the main role in the formation of osteochondrosis in the cervical spine is played by physical inactivity - a passive lifestyle, lack of properly organized physical activity.

Factors that contribute to poor circulation in the cervical vertebrae and intervertebral space include:

• Driving a car for a long time;
• working at a computer sitting for a long time in any situation;
• lifting weights regularly;
• Work conditions involving sudden movements and turns of the neck;
• poor posture;
• neck and head injuries;
• Disc displacement as a result of sports training;
• Excess weight, which leads to a high load on the intervertebral discs and causes disruption of the activity of the cervicothoracic spine;
• alcohol abuse, smoking, unhealthy diet (due to its harmful effects on metabolic processes);Stress;
• Hypothermia of the neck (for example, in the absence of a scarf during the cold season);
• sleeping on high or very soft pillows;
• Hereditary (family history of spinal diseases).

Common symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis may include:

• the onset of head, migraine-like pain (sharp), as well as the neck, which can be strengthened when moving the head (cervicalgia), as well as dull, aching (cervicalgia);
• Lumbago (sharp pain radiating to the back or arm);
• Burning behind, heart;
• stiffness of the neck, arms (especially hands);
• mobility and numbness of the neck decreased in the morning;
• feeling of trouble at the back of the head;
• Temporary darkness in the eyes, noise in the ear canal, sometimes fainting;
• Thickening of the skin on the back due to connective tissue proliferation.

Diagnostics

Most often, the doctor's diagnosis sounds like "cervical osteochondrosis of the 2nd degree".Why immediately the second?The fact is that it cannot be diagnosed in the first degree because the symptoms are so weak.During the initial examination, the doctor determines how the spine is damaged.For this, the patient is examined in different positions: horizontal, sitting, standing, bent.By counting the vertebrae, the specialist is guided to anatomical norms and determines the degree of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.The examination is not limited to visual examination - vertebral deformation can be easily felt by hand.Palpation allows you to determine pain and the strength of tension in the paravertebral muscles.But still, to get positive results for the treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, it is necessary to undergo a hardware examination.Computed tomography, X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging - All these methods make the diagnosis perfectly accurate and allow choosing the optimal treatment method.

Treatment

How to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine?This is the wrong way to phrase the question;More correctly, how to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, because it is absolutely impossible to cure osteochondrosis.However, it is quite possible to stop the process of destruction of cartilage tissue and intervertebral discs and get rid of pain and discomfort.However, this is only possible if the treatment is started at an early stage of the disease.Therefore, it is very important to consult a doctor on time.

Treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine should be comprehensive.

The treatment regimen can be presented as follows:

• drugs from the NSAID group (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) to eliminate inflammation;
• Antispasmodics - relieve spasms;
• pain relievers;
• B vitamins;
• reflexology;
• Physical therapy (physical therapy) - relieves pain and inflammation;
• Therapeutic massage - restores blood supply, relieves tension;
• acupuncture and acupressure.

But the most important method of treating cervical osteochondrosis is physical activity.

Prevention of diseases

To prevent the development of cervical osteochondrosis, it is recommended:

1. When working in soybeans, be sure to take five-minute breaks every hour, avoid neck strain,
2. Do not make sudden movements of the head, watch your posture,
3. Avoid hypothermia,
4. exercise, swim, eat right,
5. Sleep should be on a firm mattress and a low pillow: The angle of neck flexion should not exceed 15 degrees,
6. After 25 years, avoid shock loads on the spine (jumping, running).