In the modern world, the resonance of cervical osteochondrosis is difficult to overestimate.Osteochondrosis in the cervical region is more common than in other vertebral regions.Almost everyone over the age of twenty-five has this disease, to one degree or another.
Cervical osteochondrosis develops mainly due to a sedentary lifestyle, which is mainly facilitated by a person's historical transition from physical labor to mental labor, which, even to a moderate degree, is accompanied by doing work in a sitting position.
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is a degenerative-dystrophic disease of the cervical spine, which leads to damage to the intervertebral discs, which is common in osteochondrosis.Since this part of the spine is, by its nature, quite mobile, but also vulnerable due to the underdeveloped muscular corset, therefore, any negative effect on the neck or back has a particularly adverse effect on the cervical spine.Due to the fact that degenerative changes most often develop in the most mobile areas of the vertebrae, in the cervical region it is the nerve endings at the level of C5...C7 that suffer most often.
Since the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are very contradictory, they are not always considered only as symptoms of this disease, which often leads to seeking help from specialists in other medical fields.Let's look at them in more detail.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its symptoms
Due to the fact that the cervical spine is relatively dense compared to other parts, even a small tension in the neck muscles or displacement of the cervical vertebrae can cause compression or pinching of the nerve roots, which can also affect the channels located in this part.Well, osteophytes - bone growths, in folk treatment are called "salt deposits" and formed during the development of cervical osteochondrosis, lead, as a result, only to a significant deterioration of the course of the disease.
Clinical manifestations of cervical osteochondrosis, that is, its symptoms, can be divided into reflex symptoms and radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis.
Reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis include the so-called "lumbago", which is expressed in the appearance of sharp acute pain in the neck, and significantly increases with any movement.Given this, the patient often takes a forced, most comfortable head position.In addition, it is quite possible for normal "crunching" to occur when turning or other head movements.
When suffering from cervical osteochondrosis, patients often experience compression headaches that radiate to the eyeballs or the temporal part of the head.In addition, sometimes the sharpness of visual perception may decrease, as if "everything is floating in front of your eyes."
Vertebral artery syndrome can also develop when the nerve plexus is irritated, which often, due to dizziness in the patient, is mistakenly diagnosed as a cerebral circulation disorder.Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis can be manifested by sudden head movements and complicated by nausea and possible vomiting.
In addition to the above, reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis also include cardiac syndrome, where sensations similar to angina attacks occur.But the manifestation of this symptom of osteochondrosis is usually combined with a complex of other signs of the disease, so it usually does not cause difficulties in making the correct diagnosis.
Radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis, as a rule, appear due to compression of the spinal nerve endings - roots.In this case, sensory disturbances that affect motor function depend entirely on the specific nerve roots that are injured, namely:
- C1 - decreased sensitivity in the occipital region;
- C2 - occurrence of pain in the parietal or occipital region of the head;
- C3 - impaired sensitivity and the appearance of pain in the neck area, where the spinal root is injured, with the possibility of impaired speech function due to the loss of tongue sensitivity and control over it;
- C4 - the appearance of pain and decreased sensitivity in the dorsal scapulohumeral region, as well as pain in the heart and liver, with a simultaneous decrease in muscle tone in the neck and possible respiratory disorders of respiratory function;
- C5 - decreased sensitivity and pain on the outer surface of the shoulder;
- C6 – pain radiating from the cervical spine to the shoulder blade, outer surface of the humerus, forearm, and further from the wrist to the thumb;
- C7 – the same pain as C6, but radiating from the scapula to the surface of the posterior humerus, and further from the forearm to 2..4 fingers, with a decrease in sensitivity in the painful area;
- C8 – decreased sensitivity and pain from the neck to the shoulder, and then from the forearm to the little finger.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its treatment
Cervical osteochondrosis is a rather complex and very unpleasant disease, the treatment of which requires systematic, period and stage.Therapeutic treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is mainly aimed at completely stopping the pain symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis and eliminating inflammation in the neck area affected by this disease.
Patients treated for cervical osteochondrosis are treated with classical analgesics.Although recently, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which effectively relieve pain and reduce inflammatory activity, have also become widely popular in the treatment of cervical spine osteochondrosis.
Among other things, in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, chondroprotectors are also used, which slow down the process of cartilage tissue destruction and, according to many experts, also contribute to their regeneration process.In addition, the patient is prescribed the use of vitamin B, which improves metabolic processes in the patient's body.
But the use of external gel or ointment for the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is not effective, but it makes sense, because in the process of rubbing it into the skin, an additional massage of the cervical spine is performed.
Physiotherapy procedures are also combined with traditional drug treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, and in particular, the use of magnetic therapy through special therapeutic devices is very effective.Also used, in addition to the above, is therapeutic massage, physical therapy and manual therapy.However, in severe cases, surgical intervention may be necessary.
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis itself is not difficult.Recommended:
- maintain an active and healthy lifestyle,
- play sports, or at least exercise in the morning,
- efficient organization in the workplace,
- compliance with work and rest schedules,
- when working for a long time in a sitting position - during working hours, warm up several times and ensure the correct position of the head and posture while doing work.
It is also important to choose a comfortable pillow and mattress to sleep on.But for those who already suffer from this disease, the daily use of special orthopedic products for a comfortable sleep is highly recommended.