Cervical osteochondrosis is a pathological change in the tissues of the intervertebral discs and the spine itself. As a result, the soft tissues become thinner and the damping effect of the vertebrae is reduced. Compression of blood vessels and nerve fibers occurs and the mobility of the cervical spine decreases.
Cervical osteochondrosis is one of the most dangerous localizations of osteochondrosis, as the disease impairs the blood supply to the brain.
Why is cervical osteochondrosis dangerous?
As a result, the normal functioning of the cervical spine is disrupted, mobility is reduced and neck pain occurs. Cervical osteochondrosis can lead to poor blood circulation in the brain, migraines, heart rhythm disturbances, impaired vision, coordination and attention, and the development of an intervertebral hernia.
Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
The disease is characterized by sharp pain in the neck, spreads to the back of the head, scapula and forearm. The pain may be aggravated by moving the head or in certain positions. As a result of pain syndrome and inflammatory process, the cervical muscles are overloaded. Patients often have migraines, decreased hearing and vision, dizziness, tinnitus, sudden changes in blood pressure, fainting. A sign of cervical osteochondrosis may be a violation of the sensitivity of the fingertips.
Types of osteochondrosis
Localization distinguishes cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral and general osteochondrosis. Lumbar osteochondrosis is often diagnosed (more than 50% of cases), cervical (more than 25%), and widespread (approximately 12%).
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine
Parents often say a general phrase addressed to children: "Don't turn your head! " Doctors call the opposite: "Make sure you turn your head. "Every age. This is the only way to avoid a dangerous disease - cervical spine osteochondrosis.
By nature, the neck has become a very difficult task not only for holding the head and turning it in different directions, but also for untrained people who are not interested in their health. The spinal cord, which connects the nerves with the hands, heart and lungs, the arteries that supply the brain, the nerve roots and the trunk, pass through the neck.
Complaints of this type of osteochondrosis are very diverse: heart pain, headache, dizziness with short-term loss of consciousness (due to disruption of blood supply to the brain), pain in the shoulder joint or arm.
Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
Pain in the chest from time to time is familiar to anyone engaged in heavy physical labor. As a rule, these painful, unpleasant feelings serve as the first sign of the beginning of the development of a very unpleasant disease in the body - osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine. The disease often affects the so-called sedentary professions: designers, computer operators, car drivers.
However, even if you drag heavy objects every day or have to sit at your desk for long hours, you do not need osteochondrosis.
Proper posture is a reliable barrier to the disease. When walking, try to keep your back straight and your shoulders straight. As you know, to create a posture, you need from an early age. But you can do it at the age of 30 or 40. Really late as never before!
Lumbar osteochondrosis
At first there is dull pain in the lower back and legs, then there is a general numbness of the limbs, there is pain with sudden movements of the body, tremors.
Causes of cervical osteochondrosis
The causes of cervical osteochondrosis are usually associated with aging and age-related changes in the tissues. However, lifestyle and related factors increase the risk of developing the disease. These include:
- low physical activity, sedentary work;
- overweight and harmful diet;
- diseases of the musculoskeletal system: flat feet, rheumatism, scoliosis, posture disorders;
- injuries to the neck or back of the head.
In addition, osteochondrosis can be caused by other diseases of the spine. The spine is a single whole and needs to be treated in a complex way. Therefore, if you suspect osteochondrosis, the first thing to do is to have a thorough examination of the spine.
Osteochondrosis is a disease of the musculoskeletal system bones, mainly the cartilaginous surfaces of the spine (as well as the thigh and knee joints). Osteochondrosis has four stages of development.
To understand the nature of this disease, it is necessary to understand at least the structure of the spine in general. The vertebrae are connected to each other by intervertebral discs. Holes in the vertebrae form the canal in which the spinal cord is located; The roots, which are sensory nerve fibers, extend between each pair of vertebrae. When the spine bends, the intervertebral discs compress slightly at the edge of the slope and the nuclei move in the opposite direction. Simply put, intervertebral discs are shock absorbers that relieve pressure on the spine under stress.
Mass morbidity is primarily associated with the vertical position of a human being, whose load on the spine and intervertebral discs is greater than that of animals. If you do not learn to sit, stand or lie down, the disc will lose its ability to perform its function (amortization), and after a while the outer shell of the disc will crack and hernia protrusions will form. They compress the blood vessels (leading to circulatory disorders) or the roots of the spinal cord and, in rare cases, the spinal cord itself. These changes are accompanied by painful sensations and reflex tension of the back muscles.
According to statistics, almost every second person between the ages of 25 and 55 suffers from osteochondrosis. However, most people begin to experience osteochondrosis after 35 years. The development and exacerbation of osteochondrosis of the spine is facilitated by static and dynamic overload and vibration.
This can be caused by:
- work associated with frequent changes in the position of the trunk - bending and stretching, turning, shaking movements,
- lifting heavy loads,
- improper posture while standing, sitting, lying down and lifting weights,
- physical education and sports without taking into account the effects of heavy physical force,
- Unfavorable meteorological conditions - low temperatures with high humidity.
However, if you follow all the instructions exactly, you can not say that osteochondrosis will not threaten you. After all, the cause of this disease can be traumatic injuries.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
Treatment is prescribed after examination. The doctor collects a medical history and directs the patient for examination. Most of the time - for magnetic resonance imaging. Once they find the exact cause of the disease, they begin treatment.
In the acute period, the doctor prescribes painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs. During remission - physiotherapy procedures - massage, kinesiotherapy, shock wave therapy, physiotherapy exercises. These methods are aimed at strengthening the muscle corset, relieving tension and preventing attacks of the disease.
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis
- Get regular checkups.Prevention is easier than cure. Annual examinations will detect the disease at an early stage and treat it without progressing to a more severe stage.
- Look at your posture.Keep your back straight and your shoulders relaxed. If you work a lot on a computer or desk, choose a comfortable chair, sit properly and warm up every half hour or an hour of work.
- Lead an active lifestyle.It is especially useful to walk more, be outdoors, play sports, swim.
- Use an orthopedic pillow while sleeping.
Osteochondrosis and prevention
Taking care of one's health is everyone's immediate responsibility; he has no right to give it to others. After all, it often happens that a person leads a bad lifestyle, bad habits, physical inactivity, overeating in the age of 20-30, a catastrophic situation. Education, no matter how perfect, cannot save everyone. all diseases. Man is the creator of his own health, for which he must fight. It is necessary to lead an active lifestyle from an early age, to exercise restraint, to exercise and exercise, to follow the rules of personal hygiene - in short, to achieve a real health harmony.
Exercising for a long time is a reliable prevention of cervical spine osteochondrosis. Here are some exercises to prevent this type of osteochondrosis:
- Squeeze your forehead into your palm and tighten your neck muscles. Practice 3 times in 7 seconds. Then press the back of your head into the palm of your hand for 7 seconds for 3 seconds.
- Tighten the neck muscles and press with the left palm on the left palm (3 seconds 7 seconds) and then press on the right palm with the right palm (7 seconds 3 times).
- Turn your head back a little. Press your chin into the neck cavity, overcoming the resistance of the tense neck muscles. Do the exercise at least 5 times.
- Keep your head and shoulders straight. Slowly turn your head as far to the right as possible (5 times). Perform the same number of movements on the left side.
- Put your chin on your neck. First turn your head 5 times to the right, then 5 times to the left.
- Throw your head back. Try to touch your right ear to your right shoulder (5 times). Perform the same movement, try to touch the left shoulder with the left ear (5 times).
It is recommended to include these exercises in the morning hygienic exercises, as well as during the working day. You can do them both sitting and standing. But under no circumstances should you do circular movements with your head. This can result in injury.
Prevention of thoracic osteochondrosis
Osteochondrosis will not overwhelm you if you regularly perform exercises (listed below) that develop and maintain the tone of the back and abdominal muscles, ensuring the normal mobility of the thoracic and lumbar segments.
- I. s. - on foot; While breathing, stand up straight, lower your arms, and bring your feet together. Raise your arms - breathe. Lean back and take a deep breath. Then lower your arms, bend forward, round your back, lower your shoulders and head - breathe. Repeat 8-10 times.
- I. s. - sit in a chair. Put your hands behind your head - breathe, bend 3-5 as much as possible, put your shoulder blades on the back of the chair - breathe.
- I. s. - Get up on all fours. Bend your back as much as possible and hold this position for 2-3 seconds. Keep your head straight. Return to IP and repeat the same exercise 5 to 7 times.
- I. s. - Lie on your stomach and put your hands on the floor. Pull back as hard as you can, trying to pull the body off the ground.
- I. s. - Lie on your stomach, arms across the body. Bend your spine at the chest, trying to lift your head and legs as much as possible.
It is recommended to do these exercises to relieve stress on the chest during short breaks during the day. Breathing is spontaneous in 3-5 exercises. Do Exercises 4 and 5 5 to 8 times. These exercises can be included in the morning exercises. It is very useful to do a few actions after work. The main thing is that every day you prepare a prophylactic complex, then you will reliably insure yourself against osteochondrosis.
Sit properly
- Avoid too much upholstered furniture - it's not for you. The body should be supported by ischial tubercles so that body weight does not put excessive pressure on the spine, and this is only possible in rigid seats.
- the following requirements are set for the furniture on which you have to sit for a long time: the height of the chair, the chair should correspond to the length of the lower leg - the foot should stand on the floor; for short people, it is recommended to replace a bench under their feet; the maximum seat depth is about 2/3 of the hip length.
- There should be enough foot space under the table so that they do not bend too much.
- If you have to sit for a long time, try one for about 15-20 minutes. warm up a bit, change the position of the legs.
- make sure your back is tight behind the back of the chair.
- Sit straight without tilting your head too much or bending your body to avoid straining the muscles of the body.
- If, due to the nature of your activity, you have to read for a long time every day, make a device on the table (music stand) that supports the book at a sufficient height and inclined towards the table, so that you do not have to bend. upper body forward.
- try to sit comfortably while driving. Good back support is important. To do this, put a thin pillow on the back and back of the chair to protect the back. Keep your head straight. After driving for a few hours, think about the car and do the basic gymnastic exercises: turning, bending, squatting - 8-10 times each.
- Do not sit in front of the TV screen for a long time and do not lie. Change the cycle, get up to stretch. We sat for 1-1, 5 hours, sat in a chair or stool, relaxed your muscles, took a few breaths.
Stand up straight
When a person stands for a long time, his spine, especially the lumbar region, experiences significant stress.
- change your position every 10-15 minutes, this will reduce the load on the spine when you lean on one leg or the other.
- If possible, walk on the spot, move.
- from time to time, bend back, raise your arms up, take a deep breath. This can slightly reduce fatigue in the shoulder girdle, neck, neck and back muscles.
- If you are washing dishes or ironing linen, take turns putting one or the other foot on a small counter or box. For those who suffer from osteochondrosis, it is better to iron while sitting or laying on the ironing board, so as not to bend down.
- When cleaning the apartment, try not to bend down when working with a vacuum cleaner, it is better to extend the hose with additional pipes. Kneel on one knee under the table while cleaning under the bed.
- take an object from the ground, bend your knees and bend or bend by placing your hands on a chair or table. You will not overload your back.
How to lie properly
It is better not to sleep on a soft bed, but on the boards. The bed should be semi-rigid so that the body protects the physiological curves when a person lies on his back (cervical lordosis, thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis). Because of this:
- Put a shield over the entire width of the bed or sofa and put 5-8 cm thick foam rubber on it, cover it with a woolen blanket and put a sheet.
- When the pain is inside the leg, you can put a blanket roller under the knee joint - this reduces the elongation of the sciatic nerve and relieves pain in the leg.
- When the back hurts, many patients prefer to sleep on their stomachs. Place a small pillow under your lower abdomen to prevent your back from bending too much, which causes more pain.
- Sleep lovers next to them can lie with one foot on the other leg and one hand under the head.
For patients with acute osteochondrosis, getting out of bed in the morning can be very difficult. Do this:
- do simple arm and leg exercises first;
- then if you are lying on your back, roll on your stomach;
- lower one foot to the ground;
- Leaning on these legs and arms, transfer your weight to your knees and stand up slowly without making any sudden movements.
And one more tip. For those who like a bath, dry steam (sauna) is preferred, and in case of exacerbation, the sauna will have to be abandoned.
How to lift and move weights properly
One of the main reasons for the exacerbation of osteochondrosis and the formation of hernias in the intervertebral disc, especially in the lumbosacral region, is the lifting and carrying of heavy loads. Pain in the lower back occurs when a sudden, unexpected weight is lifted and a heavy object is pulled to the side as the body rotates.
How to handle weights properly
- Do not carry a heavy load in one hand, especially over long distances, so as not to load the spine, separate the load and carry it in both hands. It is unacceptable to hold a weight, bend sharply and bend (bend back).
- In general, it is undesirable for a patient with osteochondrosis to lift more than 15 kg and not want to. We recommend that you buy a cart or bag on wheels.
- A wide backpack is very convenient for carrying heavy loads over long distances. The weight of the full backpack is divided by the weight of the spine, leaving the hands free.
How to lift weights properly
- wear a weight belt or any wide belt, if any;
- the back should be straight, the neck straightened;
- Hold a weight with both hands and get up without bending your back.
And finally, the most important piece of advice. If you have severe pain in any part of the spine, you should not self-medicate with pills and ointments. Consult a qualified neurologist - you need to make an accurate diagnosis, eliminate the pain and make a plan for further treatment.