Osteochondrosis

If your back, back or neck is painful, difficult to straighten, your spine crunches - many people automatically diagnose themselves: "Of course - osteochondrosis!"The reasons for this "disease" look very clear: we live in the twenty-first century, we move a little, we don't eat right ...

However, in fact everything is a little more complicated.

What is - spinal osteochondrosis?How appropriate is such a diagnosis?And what happened in the spinal column?

In scientific terms, osteochondrosis is degenerative (that is, leading to "aging", "wear") spinal disease (in the way, it can also affect other joints).The pathological process begins with the intervertebral disc and gradually spreads to the vertebra.

Spinal osteochondrosis - does such a diagnosis exist?

In English -language medicine, this term marks a completely different group of diseases that have nothing to do with our "natural" osteochondrosis.In the classification of international disease, a book that all neurologists should refer to when showing diagnosis, there are terms such as "spinal osteochondrosis in adults," "Osteochondrosis of the spinal cord," and "spinal osteochondrosis, not determined."

However, sometimes this diagnosis is not fully made, when the doctor does not fully understand what is happening to the patient.These terms can include diseases such as:

• Myofascial pain syndrome- a condition in which cramps always occur in the same muscle.
• Muscle injury.After the injury, the pain begins to bother you, and after a while it disappears on its own.
• Otolithiasis- a condition in which crystal calcium salt accumulates in the inner ear.They lead to dizziness - sometimes they are mistaken for manifestations of spinal disease.
• Headache.They are also often associated with degenerative changes in the cervical spine.In fact, more often they have other reasons.

Treatment of spinal cord osteochondrosis

Standard Set -Treatment Steps to worsen the disease looks like this:

• Anti-inflammatory and painkillers..
• If the pain is very severe and does not disappear- Novocaine blocks are used.Doctors, armed with needles and syringes, inject anesthetics to special places where it prevents the transmission of nerve impulses.
• Physiotherapy helps:Medical electrophoresis with anesthesia, ultrasound, ultraviolet irradiation, diadynamic current.
• If the pain forced you to always be in nervous tension,Setting medicines to help calm you down.
• To an area of painDry heat is used.
• To unload the spine,Different types of attractiveness are used.The patient can be placed on a special bed with a raised bed head and secured with a ring by the armpit.Underwater attraction in the pool is also used.
• Your doctor may recommendYou should visit the chiropractor session, acupuncture.
• During severityUse special orthopedic devices that help relieve muscle and support spine - corsets, shants collar.

As the excitement passes, you need to take steps to help prevent new ones.Therapeutic and massage exercises help strengthen the muscles that support the spine.Physiotherapy courses are set.Swimming good for you.All methods of treatment for osteochondrosis have contraindications, they must be used wisely, so self-medication is not the best option.Visit your doctor.

Sometimes the symptoms of the disease, despite treatment, continue to increase, and the patient's condition worsens.In this case, neurologists can raise a question of surgical treatment.

Why do you have to visit a doctor soon?First, "real" osteochondrosis is not a harmless disease.Over time, it can make a person disabled if left untreated.Second, symptoms can be caused by the same myofascial pain syndrome - neurologists will be able to quickly detect the cause of the pain and eliminate it. 

Back pain is a symptom that, according to statistics, more than 90% of people experience at least once in their lives.It is usually associated with osteochondrosis.Not everyone with pain in the spine goes to a doctor.Many people treat themselves with medicines that can be obtained without a prescription at the pharmacy, or with folk medicine.Sometimes such "treatment" carries temporary relief - but at the same time the disease can continue to develop and, perhaps, in the future or back will "rotate" stronger.

Experienced neurologists will be able to properly evaluate the symptoms of osteochondrosis, understand their causes and prescribe proper treatment for osteochondrosis.

Pain, the main manifestations of osteochondrosis, can be more or less successful for a long time with the help of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs, and some folk medicine.But this does not solve the main problem;Pathological changes in the spine continue to increase.

Over time, this is full of compression of the spinal cord and arteries that supply it, and the development of serious neurological complications: severe weaknesses, despite complete loss, movement and sensitivity, loss of control over the bladder and rectum.

What symptoms are usually indicated as spinal osteochondrosis?

The common manifestation of the disease is pain.As a rule, they are sick, always disturbing, accompanied by numbness, arm and leg pain.Usually, the pain is increasing during the movement, weight loss, physical work, sneezing, cough, and prolonged in an uncomfortable position.

The muscles around the spine respond to pain.Tensions arise in it.Therefore, the patient may be in an antalgia position - one where the pain does not bother him so much.This gradually leads to spinal curvature.

Over time, if the disease is not treated, the pain increases and becomes very painful.Other signs of osteochondrosis occur:

• Impaired sensitivity, numbness, tingling, and "crawling" occurs in the arms and legs.
• Muscles -The limbs weaken and decrease in size over time - their atrophy grows.
• With cervical spinal osteochondrosis, patients complain of headache, dizziness, tinnitus, "spots" and bright spots in front of the eyes.
• With thoracic osteochondrosis, heart pain is disruptive.The person may have a sensation "as if the importance of the importance was driven into the chest."
• If the compression of the spinal cord root occurs (for example, during the formation of a herniated disc, it grows bone in the vertebra), severe shooting pain occurs.

Proper treatment of spinal cord osteochondrosis symptoms

The key to effective treatment is correct and timely diagnosis.During a neurological examination at the clinic, a specialist doctor will evaluate your symptoms and the degree of deterioration of certain nerve function.

Here you can undergo exams using new and modern equipment - this will help you understand what happens to your spinal column, nerve roots, surrounding tissues, and muscles.

Treatment should be directed not only to the symptoms of osteochondrosis.You should try to eliminate the cause, and if this is not possible, understand how you can maintain the most effective disease and prevent it from progress.Neurologists will create the right treatment program and adjust it by taking into account the changes in your condition.

To defeat the enemy, you need to know it with vision.This occurs with any disease: careful examination by doctors, modern instrumental studies and laboratory tests help to create accurate diagnosis, understand what is happening in the patient's body and prescribe effective treatment for osteochondrosis.

The main manifestation of osteochondrosis is back pain, symptoms that can occur with many other diseases.To establish the right cause and overcome it, you need the help of a specialist. 

Neurological examination in diagnosis of osteochondrosis: How is the appointment in the neurological office?

During your appointment, your doctor will ask you some questions:

• What complaints bother you?
• Where does the pain usually occur?
• How long does the pain last?How strong is he?
• What is the nature of pain: are they stabbing, shooting, pain, attractive?
• When does your symptoms usually occur?What gives them up?
• When and after what do you feel better?

Then the doctor will conduct a neurological examination, examine your skin sensitivity, muscle strength and tone, reflex, balance of balance, and movement coordination.Neurologists can press on a certain point near your spine to determine pain.After that, to explain the diagnosis, you will be assigned the examination program.

Our neurologists work according to the same standards: they will carefully examine you, will not miss anything, and will set all the necessary tests.

What diagnostic method is used for osteochondrosis?

Often, the following diagnostic methods are set for osteochondrosis:

• Radiography.It is conducted in at least two projections: frontal and profile.If necessary, the picture is taken in another position.
• X-ray contrast study.To study better pathological changes in the spinal column, you can be injected with contrast agent solutions to the spinal cord (myelography), an intervertebral disc (discography), and blood vessels (angiography).These studies are only conducted for special guidance.
• Calculated tomography.It helps to study the bone structure in more detail, compared to radiography, to detect the decrease in the height of the intervertebral disc, and bone growth in the vertebra.
• Magnetic resonance imaging.Helps detect changes in soft tissue with high accuracy.

Your doctor can also prescribe other diagnostic methods for osteochondrosis.Experts will make sure you get an appointment with the right doctor and undergo all the necessary tests, so you do not have to pay more for unnecessary procedures.

Prevention of osteochondrosis

To keep your health healthy, follow these suggestions:

• Your nutrition must be complete.
• You need frequent physical activity.If you have a chronic illness, consult your doctor and ask them to recommend the appropriate gymnastics complex.
• Maintaining normal weight - this will help prevent not only osteochondrosis, but also many other "wounds".
• If you have an inactive job, relax more often to walk and stretch.
• Lift the weight properly.Do not bend around the waist.Keep your back straight - your feet should do the work.

Osteochondrosis belongs to a group of diseases called "degenerative pathology."In other words, this is a disease in which the vertebrae, the intervertebral disc and the joints themselves are "thirsty", "age" (this is not a completely accurate explanation, but generally it helps to imagine what happens to the spinal column).But what causes this weary and worn out?

Why does osteochondrosis occur?

Spinal osteochondrosis is a disease that does not have a specific cause.Various factors lead to the occurrence:

• Injury.Osteochondrosis can be a strong echo from previous broken damage or ligaments.
• Microtraumas.They can be caused by the same movement in the spinal column, staying prolonged in an uncomfortable position.
• Congenital anomalies of the spine.They are different: not a combination of vertebral gates, a change in the number of vertebrae in the lumbar and sacred region, the wrong location of the articular process in the lumbar region.A person may not suspect his whole life that he has one of these conditions, and then, when his back is "sick," the anomaly was lowered during the examination.
• Autoimmune stateWhere immune cells appear in the intervertebral disc, attacking the body's own tissue.
• Disorders of blood circulation.Spinal cord tissue receives the amount of oxygen -rich blood required.

Who is most often experiencing osteochondrosis?

Certain conditions contribute to spinal problems:

• Sedient lifestyle, low physical activity.High -risk office workers.
• Excessive weight.Each additional pounds adds pressure to the spinal column.
• Excessive physical activity.Load during training in athletes.
• Poor nutrition.In order for the vertebra, ligaments and muscles to be strong and withstand the burden, they must receive the necessary materials - "building materials".
• Previous injuries to the neck, back, lower back.
• Untreated postural disorders, scoliosis.
• Stay continuously, work in an uncomfortable forced position, when you often have to stand or sit for a long time.
• If you have close relatives with osteochondrosis, your risk also increases.

What happens to the spine during osteochondrosis?

The development of osteochondrosis is mainly based on "wear and tear" of the intervertebral disc.The structure changes at the molecular level.Initially, the intervertebral disc swelled, then "dry," its height decreased, it began to stand out outside the vertebral body, and the cracks and tears appeared on the outside.Through them, the ship grows inside, the disc becomes more compact, and the calcification begins in it.The vertebra becomes loose.

Next, the degenerative process spreads to its own vertebrae and intervertebral joints.The muscles surrounding the affected part of the spine are always under tension, and the cocoon appears in it.

To balance the increased load on the vertebra, growing bone (osteophytes) appears on them, increasing their surface.

Depending on where pathological changes occur, cervical, thoracic and lumbar osteochondrosis are distinguished.Two or three parts may be affected at once.