In the modern world, it is difficult to overestimate the resonance of the disease cervical osteochondrosis.Osteochondrosis of the cervical region is much more common than in other vertebral regions.Almost everyone over the age of twenty-five has this disease in one form or another.
Cervical osteochondrosis develops mainly due to a sedentary lifestyle, which is especially facilitated by the historical transition of a person from physical work to mental work, which, although in a moderate form, is accompanied by performing work in a sitting position.
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is a degenerative-dystrophic disease of the cervical spine, which causes damage to the intervertebral discs, which is generally common in osteochondrosis disease.Since this part of the spine is by nature quite mobile, but also vulnerable due to a poorly developed muscular corset, any negative effect on the neck or back has a negative effect primarily on the cervical spine.Due to the fact that degenerative changes develop more frequently in the most mobile vertebral regions, in the cervical region it is the nerve endings at the C5...C7 level that suffer most frequently.
Since the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are highly contradictory, they are not always considered solely as symptoms of this disease, which often leads to seeking help from specialists in other areas of medicine.Let's look at them in a little more detail.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its symptoms
Due to the fact that the cervical spine is quite compact compared to its other sections, even a small tension in the neck muscles or displacement of the cervical vertebrae can cause compression or pinching of the nerve roots, which can also affect the vessels located in this section.Well, osteophytes - bone growths, in popular treatment called “salt deposition” and formed during the development of the disease cervical osteochondrosis, lead, as a result, only to a significant worsening of the course of the disease.
The clinical manifestations of cervical osteochondrosis, that is, its symptoms, can be divided into reflex symptoms and radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis.
Reflexive symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
The reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis include the so-called “lumbago”, which is expressed in the appearance of sharp, sharp pain in the neck and noticeably intensifies with any movement.In view of this, patients often assume a more comfortable, forced head position.Furthermore, it is quite possible that a typical “clack” occurs when turning or other head movements.
When suffering from cervical osteochondrosis, patients often experience headaches that are compressive in nature and radiate to the eyeball or the temporal part of the head.Furthermore, sometimes the acuity of visual perception can decrease, as if “everything is floating before your eyes”.
Vertebral artery syndrome can also develop when the nerve plexus is irritated, which is often misdiagnosed as a cerebral circulatory disorder due to the patient's dizziness.This symptom of cervical osteochondrosis can manifest itself with sudden head movements and is complicated by nausea and possible vomiting.
In addition to the above, the reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis also include cardiac syndrome, in which sensations similar to an angina attack occur.But this manifestation of osteochondrosis symptoms is often combined with a complex of other signs of this disease, therefore it usually does not cause difficulties in making the correct diagnosis.
Root symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis, as a rule, appear due to compression of the spinal nerve ending - the root.In this case, sensory disturbances that affect motor functions depend entirely on which specific nerve root is injured, namely:
- C1 – decreased sensitivity in the occipital region;
- C2 – occurrence of pain in the parietal or occipital region of the head;
- C3 – impaired sensitivity and appearance of pain in the neck region, where there was injury to the spinal root, with possible impairment of speech function due to loss of tongue sensitivity and control over it;
- C4 – appearance of pain and decreased sensitivity in the dorsal scapulohumeral region, as well as pain in the heart and liver, with a simultaneous decrease in muscle tone in the neck and possible respiratory disorders of the respiratory function;
- C5 – decreased sensitivity and pain on the external surface of the shoulder;
- C6 – pain radiating from the cervical spine to the scapula, external humeral surface, forearm and subsequently from the wrist to the thumb;
- C7 – the same pain as C6, but radiating from the scapula to the posterior surface of the humerus, and subsequently from the forearm to the 2..4 fingers of the hand, with decreased sensitivity in the area of pain;
- C8 – decreased sensitivity and pain that goes from the neck to the shoulder and then from the forearm to the little finger.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its treatment
Cervical osteochondrosis is a very complex and extremely unpleasant disease, the treatment of which requires systematicity, duration and stages.Therapeutic treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is mainly aimed at completely stopping the painful symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis and eliminating inflammation in the neck region affected by the disease.
Patients treated for cervical osteochondrosis are treated with classical analgesics.Although recently, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which effectively relieve pain and reduce the activity of inflammation, have also become widely popular in the treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Among other things, in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, chondroprotectors are also used, which slow down the process of destruction of cartilaginous tissue and, according to many experts, also contribute to the process of its regeneration.Additionally, patients are prescribed the use of B vitamins, which improve metabolic processes in the patient's body.
But the use of external gels or ointments for the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is not effective, but it makes sense, since in the process of rubbing on the skin, an additional massage of the cervical spine is performed.
Physiotherapy procedures are additionally combined with traditional drug treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, and in particular, the use of magnetic therapy through special therapeutic devices is especially effective.In addition to the above, therapeutic massage, physiotherapy and manual therapy are also used.But in especially severe cases of the disease, surgical intervention may be necessary.
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis
Preventing cervical osteochondrosis in itself is not difficult.Recommended:
- maintain an active and healthy lifestyle,
- do sports, or at least morning exercise,
- competent organization of the workplace,
- compliance with work and rest schedules,
- when working for a long time while sitting - during working hours, warm up several times and ensure the correct position and posture of the head while performing work.
It is also important to select a comfortable pillow and mattress to sleep on.But for those who already suffer from this disease, it is strongly recommended to use specialized orthopedic products daily for a comfortable sleep.