Osteochondrosis disease: what is it and how is it expressed?This is a fairly common pathology that appears more frequently in older people, but today the incidence is often observed among young people.To select the correct treatment for osteochondrosis, it is necessary to establish the cause of its occurrence and the stage of damage to the body.Well, to recognize this disease it is necessary to have an idea of what type of disease it is and everything related to osteochondrosis in general.And how to get rid of osteochondrosis and alleviate the patient's condition?
What is osteochondrosis?
The diagnosis of osteochondrosis is a degenerative-destructive disorder of the spine.The basis of this disease is a change in the trophism of the vertebrae and intervertebral discs, as a result of which the normal tissue structure is disturbed.The cartilaginous disc becomes inelastic, changing its shape and consistency.The width of the intervertebral spaces narrows and the damaged section of the spine loses its stability.Damage to the correct relationship between the vertebrae is associated with compression of the nerve endings extending from the spinal cord and the intensity of the back muscles.As a result, neurological symptoms of osteochondrosis and pain appear.
Dystrophic disc disorders cause a decrease in the annulus fibrosus.In this regard, the patient often develops dangerous complications (vertebral hernia, protrusion).
Subsequently, osteochondrosis as a degenerative disorder spreads to the small joints of the spine, intervertebral ligaments and bone growths of the vertebrae are formed.The patient can barely bend or straighten up;That is, flexibility disappears, vertebral subluxations and spinal curvatures (scoliosis, kyphosis) occur.
Depending on the location, the pathology affects:
- cervical region;
- chest;
- lumbar.
The first signs of osteochondrosis do not appear immediately, but gradually.These degenerative damages to bone and cartilage tissue quickly lead to physiological aging of the body.Below you can see what osteochondrosis is and how to treat it.
What is back pain?
Back pain is a rather complex syndrome that occurs in various diseases.It can be associated with both back diseases and other disorders of internal organs.
Most often it is formed as a result of osteochondrosis, spondylosis, herniated disc and severe scoliosis.This syndrome is manifested by mild pain in the damaged area of the back.
Causes of the disease
What causes osteochondrosis?The exact causes of osteochondrosis have not yet been established.There are many predisposing circumstances that cause osteochondrosis, some of them are:
- genetic predisposition;
- changes in the body's metabolic flow;
- poisonings, infectious pathologies;
- Smoking and stress cause narrowing and spasms of blood vessels;
- foot diseases that cause spinal overload (flat feet);
- overweight, obesity;
- microtrauma of the spine (blows, falls, sudden shakes) and macrotrauma (bruises, fractures);
- age-related changes;
- hypothermia, sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition lead to a lack of fluids and vitamins;
- metabolic disorders;
- Unique climate (high humidity, low air temperatures).
Osteochondrosis has other causes and each of them can appear as a result of an improper lifestyle.
There is a popular belief that many diseases arise from the nerves.Suspicious and temperamental people often suffer from diseases of the joints and spine.
The psychological causes of osteochondrosis can also be noted:
- insomnia, depression;
- stress, nervous breakdowns;
- feeling of loneliness, feeling of fear;
- sad mood;
- psychological pathologies;
- Problems in sexual life.
The psychology of this disease is not completely established.
Symptoms
In the case of osteochondrosis, the symptoms and treatment will depend on the location of the lesion and the stage of the damage.
Symptoms of spinal osteochondrosis affecting the cervical spine are as follows:
- pain in the parietal, occipital and temporal areas, which increases with turns and movements of the neck;
- tinnitus, hearing loss;
- dizziness, blinking eyes, fainting;
- visual impairment;
- changes in blood pressure;
- hoarse voice, snoring;
- numbness.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis of the back affecting the thoracic region:
- numbness of the skin on the chest, back, abdomen;
- pain when raising your arms, breathing deeply and exhaling;
- aching, squeezing, often sharp, sharp pain in the heart area;
- discomfort and difficulty turning the body in one direction or another;
- intense pain in the spine.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis in women and men with damage to the lumbar region:
- feeling of numbness, tingling, goosebumps on the legs, buttocks;
- increased sweating;
- pain in the lumbar region, transmitted to one or two legs;
- varicose veins in the lower extremities;
- feet freeze even in warm temperatures;
- Women have irregular menstruation, men have potency disorders.
When the treatment of osteochondrosis and the symptoms are long and advanced, the damaged vertebrae fuse, the patient feels tormented by the impossibility of movement in one area or another of the spine and the pain usually decreases or disappears completely.How to treat spinal osteochondrosis?
Diagnosis
If you have osteochondrosis, what should you do and how to overcome it?Before starting treatment for osteochondrosis of the back, the treating doctor must correctly establish the diagnosis by initially examining and interviewing the patient.And yet, how to recognize osteochondrosis?
To confirm the pathology, it is necessary to undergo the following examination methods:
- computed tomography, which recognizes the state of the intervertebral discs, their structure, shape, compression of nerve endings, deformations;
- MRI, which reveals the smallest lesions in the spinal area, is used when CT scan could not reveal the exact result;
- x-ray, establishes the degree of damaged vertebrae, their location and bony appearance;
- Doppler ultrasound detects the degree of change in blood flow through the capillaries that saturate the spinal cord and other organs.
Sometimes a thorough examination can reveal associated pathologies that arise in case of a complication of this disease (hernia, radiculitis, protrusion, kyphosis).
The diagnostic feature is of great importance, since many symptoms and signs are very similar to the symptoms of other diseases, and the foci of pain can be the spinal process, and also a damaged intervertebral disc.
How to cure spinal osteochondrosis?
Treatment of spinal osteochondrosis is a rather long process involving the complex use of medications;You will also need a specific treatment regimen for osteochondrosis and an individual attitude towards each patient.The selection of the necessary treatment regimen for any patient is determined by the nature of the pathological disorders, the condition of the person and the presence of complications of the disease.
Also an important condition for treating osteochondrosis is staged treatment.First of all, during an exacerbation of osteochondrosis, treatment is aimed at eliminating pain.The patient is recommended to rest, use special collars and corsets designed to unload the spine on its own.External and internal treatment with medications and physical procedures will be required.
Then procedures will be needed that can prevent the formation of new exacerbations (therapeutic exercises, reflexology, manual therapy, massage).
Medications
Is it possible to cure osteochondrosis with medications?Medicines should be used at the time of exacerbation of the disease.They help reduce symptoms and influence individual etiological factors in the development of the disease.
The most common medications used to treat osteochondrosis are:
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.They have an analgesic effect, quickly relieve inflammation and can reduce the rise in temperature of damaged tissues of the spine.These products are used in the form of injections, ointments, gels and tablets.
- Muscle relaxants.They fight against increased muscle tone, which can often appear in this pathology.
- Chondroprotectors.They reduce the processes of cartilage destruction and lead to its restoration.
- Painkillersfor local effects (pepper patch, compresses).
- Vitamins E, B1, B2, B6.Increases metabolism, restores damaged tissue.It is best to use them in the form of injections.
- Vasodilator medications.Designed to eliminate vascular spasms.
- Glucocorticosteroids.Relieves swelling, inflammation, increases the effect of muscle relaxants, NSAIDs.
- Angioprotectors.Restore blood flow, metabolism, muscle tone capillaries.
therapeutic exercise
In case of spinal disease, the symptoms can be pronounced, so only a specialist can advise what to do in case of osteochondrosis.
Exercise therapy or physiotherapy is an effective treatment for osteochondrosis, since gymnastics to strengthen the muscles of the back leads to the development of a muscle corset, which makes it possible to equally distribute the load on the spine.Thanks to constant procedures, blood circulation is restored, tissue nutrition is restored, and movements become easier.
For example, special breathing exercises reduce muscle spasms and relieve pain.But swimming can significantly relax and relieve the spine.
However, for physiotherapy to be effective and safe, exercises should be performed only after eliminating the acute symptoms of the disease.
Physiotherapeutic treatment
In addition to medications, the treatment of osteochondrosis of the back also involves physiotherapy measures.They help speed up the recovery process and continue to be used throughout the remission period, outside of exacerbations.There are many physiotherapy methods and many of them are practiced specifically for the treatment and osteochondrosis of the back, for example:
- Magnetotherapy– restores metabolic processes, reduces inflammation, tissue swelling and pain.
- Electrophoresis.The medications used during this procedure promote analgesic results, improve blood flow in damaged tissues and normalize metabolism.
- manual therapy– reduces pain, joint mobility may occur.
- laser therapy– normalizes blood circulation, reduces inflammation, pain, stimulates tissue regeneration.
- Acupuncture.Special needles can relieve pain, relieve inflammation and stimulate metabolic processes.
- Massage.Spinal osteochondrosis can be cured with the help of therapeutic massage, which eliminates pain, restores muscle tone and nerve conduction.
- tractionfor osteochondrosis disease of the spine in adults.It helps to normalize mobility, blocks the progression of the disease and the manifestation of complications.
It happens that a doctor prescribes a wide range of such procedures to one patient at a time.This usually depends on how osteochondrosis manifests and associated diseases.The duration of the course is 10 to 15 days.It is advisable to repeat them 3-4 times throughout the year.In this sense, it is possible to reduce the rate of progression and the frequency of complications several times.
Surgical treatment
Is osteochondrosis treated surgically?For osteochondrosis of the spine, treatment is possible in this way.The reason for this intervention may be the patient's late visit to the doctor, the presence of complications or the failure of conservative treatment.
Any type of surgical intervention helps eliminate pressure on the spinal cord and roots.When a person has an intervertebral hernia, the damaged disc and the hernia itself are completely removed.
The surgical method involves a certain degree of risk and is performed in emergency situations.
Of course, it is unlikely that you will be able to get rid of osteochondrosis forever, but with the help of medications, physiotherapy measures and massage, you can forget about the unpleasant symptoms of the disease for a certain period of time.