Cervical osteochondrosis or osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is a common disease of scientists. A disease that progresses rapidly. An increase in the incidence of early strokes is associated with cervical osteochondrosis, a complicated development of disc herniation. MRI scan is required for diagnosis.
What is cervical osteochondrosis?
Cervical osteochondrosis is a common cause of neck pain, headaches, pressure surges, shoulder pain, numbness of the fingers, pain under the shoulder blade. Currently, the incidence of cervical osteochondrosis has increased significantly, as the role of computers in our lives has increased.
However, a fall or injury can stimulate the onset of osteochondrosis, and degeneration (wear and tear) of the intervertebral discs over time can lead to symptoms.
Symptoms
In addition to moderate or mild pain, a feeling of stiffness in the neck, and, in some cases, reduced mobility, many patients with cervical osteochondrosis experience numbness, tingling, and even weakness in the neck, arm, or shoulder as a result of chemical action. irritation and pinching of nerves in the cervical spine.
For example, pinching the nerve root in the C6-C7 segment can cause weakness of the triceps, shoulder or forearm muscles, weakness of the wrist muscles, causing the arm to "hang" and a change in sensitivity in the middle finger.
Cervical osteochondrosis also often leads to the development of stenosis (narrowing) of the spinal canal and other progressive conditions, such as intervertebral hernia. How does that happen?
Osteochondrosis is nothing but vertebral degeneration, caused, as a rule, by the natural aging of the body. With aging, ligaments thicken, bone growths on the vertebrae form and other changes occur. When the ligaments of the spine thicken or bone growths appear, as well as for a number of other reasons, there is less space left for the spinal cord and nerves inside the spinal canal. This condition is called stenosis, ie. narrowing of the spinal canal. Serious narrowing of the spinal canal can lead to compression of the nerve roots or even the spinal cord itself.
Intervertebral hernia is also, in most cases, the result of degeneration. Intervertebral discs serve as shock absorbers between the vertebrae, thus preventing their destruction. Over time, the disc loses moisture and nutrients, flattens, becomes more fragile and less elastic. As a result, a crack may form in the ring, through which part of the nucleus pulposus is pushed into the spinal canal. This condition is called an intervertebral hernia. If an intervertebral hernia compresses a nearby nerve root, pain syndrome and / or corresponding neurological symptoms occur.
Diagnosis
Successful diagnosis of cervical osteochondrosis begins with consultation with a physician. The doctor compiles the patient's medical history and performs a physical examination to check the mobility and sensitivity of the neck. During the examination, the patient may be asked to perform certain movements and report how the symptoms of pain change (increase or decrease).
If the examination shows that additional tests are needed, your doctor may recommend radiographic tests such as radiography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT). These diagnostic tests, with varying degrees of reliability, can confirm the presence and localization of osteochondrosis, as well as identify other conditions (e. g. , calcification or arthritis) that may be causing the patient’s symptoms.
The best option for radiographic examination at the moment is MRI, because with the help of magnetic resonance imaging it is possible to obtain high-quality detailed images not only of bone tissue, as on radiography, but also soft tissues of the spine, including muscles, ligaments, veins, nerves and intervertebral discs. CT is usually prescribed if there are contraindications for magnetic resonance imaging, the main of which is the presence of metal structures or devices in the body (artificial joints, pacemakers, etc. ). The quality of CT scans is lower than the quality of MR scans, but they can also show the condition of the soft tissues of the spine.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
Conservative (non-surgical) treatment of osteochondrosis is always recommended as the primary strategy, and surgical intervention is considered only if complex conservative treatment for at least six months has not yielded results or if pain and other symptoms significantly interfere with the patient's daily routine. .
Methods used in the conservative treatment of cervical osteochondrosis may include:
- spinal traction (traction). The methods of spinal traction without load, which have been used recently, enable the complete elimination of the complications of this method of treatment, without which traction with load cannot. As the intervertebral distance increases, the nutrition of all intervertebral discs improves, and the pain syndrome disappears.
- Corrective gymnastics. . Corrective gymnastics can improve the mobility of the spinal segment. In the segment of the mobile vertebra, hernias and protrusions do not grow and do not form, because the intervertebral discs perform their function.
- mass therapy.
- drug therapy. Includes NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) and painkillers. In most cases, drug therapy has little or no temporary effect.
- cervical corsets, orthopedic pillows. They can be recommended to stabilize the cervical spine and reduce the pressure on the nerve root after trauma and fracture of the spine.
Surgical treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
If there is no significant relief after six months of conservative treatment, and the daily routine becomes difficult for the patient, surgery may be considered. Typically, in cervical osteochondrosis, a procedure called spinal fusion is performed to immobilize the affected spinal segment. This surgery involves removing the intervertebral disc, decompressing the nerve root, and placing a bone or metal implant to maintain or create normal disc space and stabilize the spinal segment.
As a rule, spinal fusion is performed on one vertebral segment, in rare cases the question of performing surgery on two vertebral segments can be considered. Either way, the patient must know that surgery to relieve neck pain symptoms is much less likely to lead to positive results than similar surgery to relieve arm pain with cervical osteochondrosis. Therefore, if neck pain is the main or only symptom, spinal fusion should be recommended only as a last resort or if all conservative treatments have tried and failed. If disc space cannot be identified as the most likely source of neck pain, surgery is best avoided, even if conservative treatment does not provide significant pain relief. In addition, do not forget that spinal surgery can be fraught with quite serious consequences both on the operated area (local infection, implant rejection, etc. ) and on the whole body (blood clots, allergic reactions to drugs, etc. ). . Therefore, before making a decision on surgical treatment, it is necessary to discuss all the details of the operation directly with the surgeon who will report it. It should also be noted that operations on the cervical spine most often lead the patient to spinal disability.
What is cervical osteochondrosis?
Official medicine interprets osteochondrosis as a degenerative-dystrophic lesion of the intervertebral discs.
From which part of the spine these discs are located, the definition of the disease is also given.
Consider in particular the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis, which accounts for almost 80% of all diseases of our backs.
The sad factor is that the disease affects the category of patients aged 30 to 50, ie at the peak of working ability.
In young people, the disease acts as an independent disease, in old age it is already a pathology that has developed in the background of other diseases of the joints.
How did the disease develop?
Any part of the spine is characterized by the phased development of the disease. Cervical osteochondrosis does not go beyond this framework, so it is worth looking in detail at each of its stages.
- In the initial phase, the intervertebral discs are gradually destroyed. Between them is the annulus fibrosus, in which cracks appear, which leads to a decrease in the elasticity and strength of the discs themselves. They shrink and compress the nerve roots.
- The second phase is a consequence of the untreated first phase. The initial destruction of the discs turns into a chronic form, tissue compaction occurs, dislocations of the cervical vertebrae are observed. Head fall syndrome often develops at this stage.
- In the third phase, the feelings of pain intensify, constant headaches appear, the sensitivity of the upper limbs is lost, and the cervical "lumbago" suffers. This is due to the fact that the fibrous ring is almost completely destroyed at this stage.
There is often a reduction in the feeling of pain in third-degree cervical osteochondrosis. This happens at the moment when the cartilage tissue disappears and there is nothing to hurt.
Causes
Given the prevalence of osteochondrosis in general, doctors have begun to carefully study its causes. Many negative factors have been identified, but there is no definitive list. Here are the ones announced to date:
- sedentary lifestyle;
- all kinds of poisoning and infections;
- heavy physical activity;
- smoking;
- constant weight lifting;
- stress and nervous tension;
- uncomfortable shoes or an irregular foot that creates unnecessary pressure on the spine;
- improper diet;
- frequent hypothermia and exposure to bad weather;
- age changes;
- spinal cord injury;
- poor heredity;
- a sharp refusal to train, if they have done them for a long time before.
Once you are familiar with the reasons, it becomes obvious that cervical osteochondrosis can occur at any age. And if the symptoms of osteochondrosis are initially insignificant and marked by rare attacks of pain, then over time it turns out that it is impossible to turn the neck, and it is difficult to tilt the head. And these are not the only dangers of disease.
What is the danger of disease
Our neck is a big worker. She is involved all day, and her small vertebrae stoically endure all our turns and tilts of the head. If the bones move, the nerves constrict and the blood vessels constrict, and the vertebral artery, which is responsible for feeding the brain, passes through the cervical spine. The artery is compressed, the nerve root is compressed and the inflammatory process begins.
what does this lead toSpinal stroke, ischemia, intervertebral hernia - these are severe consequences of cervical osteochondrosis. Here we add a general reduction in motility and osteophyte formation. As a result, we have a disability that threatens complete immobility. With such a disappointing prognosis, it is important to quickly recognize the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis.
Symptoms
The shortest way to identify osteochondrosis are patient complaints. So what kind of feelings does a person talk about if his cervical vertebrae are destroyed? The picture of the disease looks like this:
- dizziness;
- Severe headache;
- "Flies" and colored spots in the eyes on the background of headaches;
- pain when turning, lifting weights;
- pain that spreads to other organs (heart region, other organs).
Sometimes the signs of osteochondrosis can be classified as other diseases, but they cannot be ignored, even if they are temporary.
Diagnosis and treatment
In the continuation of the feelings that the patient expresses, the neurologist moves on to a more precise diagnosis of the disease. A few years ago, only X-rays were in the arsenal of doctors to recognize osteochondrosis. Today, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging are actively used. They allow you to accurately determine the stage of the disease.
After assessing the obtained image, a specialist vertebroneurologist prescribes the necessary treatment. The first thing the doctor does is to alleviate the pain, then the swelling and inflammation. Such anti-inflammatory drugs are used to relieve pain. As we recall, compression of the vertebral artery disrupts the supply to the brain, which means it needs to be improved. This is done with the help of muscle relaxants.
Knowing that the symptoms and treatment of cervical osteochondrosis are related to the spine, massage and physiotherapy exercises are necessarily included in the complex of measures to improve health. The massage is performed by a professional and the patient himself. There are also special exercises aimed at developing the cervical vertebrae and restoring their mobility.