Currently, not only people of retirement age are susceptible to this disease, but also young people over 25 are also at risk. Osteochondrosis affects different areas and parts: the lower back, neck, chest.
Causes and stages of cervical osteochondrosis
Osteochondrosis occurs due to the effect of such factors:
- excessive physical load on the spine.
- crouching, spinal injuries.
- nervous tension, stressful situations.
- Insufficient intake of essential vitamins, minerals and trace elements, which slows down the metabolic process and leads to the formation of osteochondrosis.
- sedentary life?
- the presence of flat feet.
- sleeping on a soft pillow or mattress.
- frequent uncomfortable postures while sitting.
- transfer the bag to one side.
- circulatory disorders and muscle spasms.
All causes in combination or individually create favorable conditions for the development of osteochondrosis. Women are more prone to this disease and wearing high heels and a bag on one shoulder aggravates the condition, pregnancy is no exception. Failure to follow the rules recommended by the treating physician exposes the mother's health to serious violations.
During the process of pressure in the cervical region, cracks are formed in the cartilage, there are possible displacements of the disc and pinching of the nerves and the spinal cord. Along the cervical region there are vessels that provide the necessary substances to the brain, their compression leads to serious health problems. If you do not treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine at home, the person's condition worsens, the distance between the vertebrae narrows, then the bone tissue grows, causing severe pain and discomfort. There are several stages of cervical osteochondrosis:
- The first stage is characterized by the appearance of cracks in the fibrous ring, possibly the displacement of the nucleus to the side. Symptoms will be shootings and severe pain, sudden muscle spasms, the patient may have dilated pupils and numbness of the tongue - this is an indication of the initial stage of nerve involvement. Specialists often also diagnose Wright and Naffziger syndromes, the features of which are numbness of the hand when standing up, tingling, pinching of the nerve endings in the key area. Neck pain that does not go away on its own and often occurs during physical exertion, characteristic stinging in the affected areas, unexplained fatigue, tinnitus.
- In the second stage, the gap between the vertebrae narrows even more, this leads to the drying of the fibrous ring, the rupture of the capsule is also accompanied by an inflammatory process. Without proper treatment, osteophytes - bone growths - appear.
- The third stage is characterized by complete rupture of cartilage tissue, nucleus prolapse may occur, causing the formation of an intervertebral disc herniation. Symptoms that help identify the disease in stage 3 are often acute pain in the cervical region, frequent numbness of the limbs, a person can not control his arm or leg, this is accompanied by dizziness and headaches, loss of consciousness.
Diagnosis and treatment of the disease
If you suspect cervical osteochondrosis, you can not self-medicate. The symptoms of some diseases are very similar to each other and self-medication can lead to worsening of the condition and a wheelchair.
The disease is always easier to eradicate in the early stages of development, when it has not gained strength and has little damage to internal organs.
The loss of valuable time threatens with a long treatment, which consists of taking medication, physical therapy exercises and adhering to the daily routine.
If symptoms of the disease are detected, it is necessary to contact a specialist - a neurologist, he will be able to diagnose, determine the damage to the nerve endings and prescribe additional x-rays, vascular ultrasound and tomography. The diagnosis is based on MRI and X-ray.
In the early stages of the disease, the patient can treat cervical osteochondrosis at home, visiting a specialist at a specific time and fully following his advice and prescriptions.
Medication consists of taking certain medications, which must be prescribed by the doctor, depending on the stage of the disease and the general condition of the body, indicating the dosage:
- NSAIDs, take up to 2 weeks.
- sedatives avoid complete exhaustion of the nervous system, including tincture of mother herb, valerian.
- When edema occurs, the doctor prescribes diuretics that reduce the swelling of the inflamed area.
- Thanks to the intake of B vitamins, metabolic processes in the affected tissues of the nervous system are normalized, neuromuscular conduction is improved.
- Muscle relaxants relax muscles that are prone to spasms.
- taking chondroprotective drugs to improve the function of the intervertebral discs and cartilage tissues.
- In addition, the specialist prescribes the use of ointments and creams, soothe pain, warm the tissue and help relieve the human condition.
If the patient feels unwell, bed rest is mandatory. Due to the correct position of the body, the spinal discs relax, the pain is reduced. Resting in bed does not last more than 2 days, then the patient must be sure that he will move.
Tips for relieving the human condition
Doctors often hear the question of how to treat cervical osteochondrosis at home. If the patient is in the acute stage of the disease, it is recommended to perform light breathing exercises and several exercises to relieve convulsions.
With the improvement of the well-being, it is allowed to perform a set of exercises in a sitting or standing position under the supervision of an experienced specialist. When a person has learned all the necessary rules and follows them strictly, he is allowed to do therapeutic exercises at home.
It consists of many smooth turns and inclinations of the head and then the load is gradually increased. If a muscle spasm occurs suddenly, it is necessary to do a light massage that does not cause pain and discomfort.
With good health for preventative purposes, experts recommend that you visit an experienced massage therapist twice a year. It is able not only to warm the muscles properly and quickly, but also to qualitatively remove small deposits of salt and to develop joints and vertebrae.
After consultation with the doctor, the use of the Glisson loop is allowed, which consists of several straps hung on a hook. They allow you to support your head and relieve stress from your neck. Diet plays an important role in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis. Experts advise to exclude from daily consumption products that can increase muscle tone and lead to spasm - coffee, tea, alcoholic beverages and low-alcohol beverages, smoked products and spices. A person with osteochondrosis will benefit from:
- Foods high in fiber, phytochemicals and antioxidants will not only improve the general condition of the patient, but will have a positive effect on the vertebrae and cartilage tissues: these are fresh fruits and vegetables, legumes in any form, cereals.
- products containing protein - milk and its derivatives, nuts of all kinds, eggs, dietary and lean meats and fish, beef.
- products with unsaturated fatty acids - fatty varieties of marine fish, flax seeds, lightly fried and dried.
- products with a high level of calcium in the composition - sour milk, mineral water.
If a person is not in the acute stage, it is even better not to risk and break the affected tissues again due to eating the wrong food. You need to drink plenty of plain non-carbonated water, balance your diet, do daily therapeutic exercises, which not only weaken and relieve tension from the affected areas of the body, but also have a strengthening effect on the patient's body. .
At work, you need to rest at short intervals, do a quick self-massage and monitor the correct posture.
The risk of self-medication
You do not need to self-medicate to avoid putting yourself in great danger. Only an experienced specialist can understand the disease, discover the stage of osteochondrosis, take measures to eliminate the disease and prescribe the correct and specific treatment. Some diseases are quite insidious and can easily be disguised as others.
Examination using X-rays, ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging will help to check the structure of the vertebral discs, to detect problems and to find the right option to eliminate them and alleviate the patient's condition. If a person does self-medication, he may lose the initial stage of the disease and expose his body to even greater damage. Uncontrolled medication will damage not only the gastrointestinal tract, but also the liver and kidneys, which will remove toxins and cleanse the blood in an enhanced way.
After consulting your doctor at home, you can use your own decoctions of medicinal herbs and plants, which will enhance the effect of ointments and preparations:
- Celery: 1 teaspoon The crushed root of this plant is poured into 1 liter of hot water and left to infuse for 8 hours, after draining, take 1 teaspoon. 3 times a day after meals. Celery seeds: 1 tbsp. large. pour 0. 5 liters of boiling water, insist for 2 hours and take 1 tbsp. large. 3 times a day before meals.
- Fresh horseradish or cabbage leaves, pre-crumpled, applied to sore spots, tied on top with a warm scarf or handkerchief and changed as needed.
Specialist recommendations for the prevention of osteochondrosis
The most common mistake many patients make is the persistent belief that the disease will go away on its own.
Doctors say that such an attitude to one's health has a detrimental effect on a person's condition and worsens the course of cervical osteochondrosis.
The course of treatment consists not only in the elimination of pain, discomfort and certain symptoms, but also in the restoration of damaged vertebral and cervical discs, elimination of the compression of the arteries that lead to the brain and maintaining the well-being of the individual.
The recovery process is quite long and requires a lot of endurance, effort and help from relatives and friends, but the result will allow you to feel free, not dependent on drugs and enjoy life.