Osteochondrosis is a condition in which many abnormalities are observed in the joint cartilage of the dystrophic nature. Osteocondrosis can occur in various joints, but osteochondrosis most often affects intervertebral discs. If you take into account the location of the disease, osteochondrosis is common to divide to chest, cervix, groin. Osteochondrosis is a disease that is approx. 80% causes pain. In the case of complications of osteochondrosis, intervertebral disks are sometimes found in the head, limbs and other organs. The most common is lumbar osteochondrosis, which causes pain in the legs. Many complain about the cervical osteochondrosis manifestations in which the hands and the head hurt. In the form of chest, pain occurs in the internal organs.
Causes of osteochondrosis
The initial cause of osteochondrosis of the spine is the lightness of man. There are many diverse theories about the causes of osteochondrosis. For example, hereditary nature, injury and metabolism are predisposed. The cause of the disease is complicated by the fact that the disease occurs in people of different ages, different physical and physical levels of development.
There is also a theory that osteochondrosis is caused by salts in the spine. However, experts claim that this is somewhat mistaken. And the right analysis of the causes of the disease is the main effective treatment of the disease.
In the case of osteochondrosis, the nature of the disease is not inflammatory, degenerative-dynist. In the process of developing the disease, the nutrition of the tissue is disturbed and its structure was reborn. People who have constantly active physical activity have more durable and elastic bone tissue. This is due to the fact that the spine does not have their own Ede in adulthood, so the oxygen and nutrients of the discs come from nearby tissues. A similar procedure can only be filled with active blood circulation, which is only possible in the process of constant intense muscle operation.
Each vertebral disc is two parts. In the middle of the disc has a gelatin seed that makes the disc elastic and surrounds the fibrous durable ring. If the food of intervertebral discs becomes worse, the structure of the bio -polymer compounds can be destroyed. Due to a decrease in the plate moisture, it will be fragile. And if the spine is overloaded, the jacket is divided into fragments. As a result, its elasticity is significantly reduced. The fibrous rings also lose power. Such phenomena become the starting point for the manifestation of osteochondrosis in people. The manifestation of degenerative-dynamic changes in the spine is whitewashed by damaged discs, leagues and capsules. A similar phenomenon is the last phase of the disease.
Unfortunately, the reverse process after such a change in the spine is almost impossible. Therefore, the main task of treating osteochondrosis is to maintain the current situation.
Basically, the manifestations of osteochondrosis are increasingly pronounced by people after reaching the age of thirty. In fact, the older a person becomes, the more the manifestation of the disease. However, more and more young doctors are dealing with back pain complaints recently.
The causes of such early occurrence of osteochondrosis are primarily very weak physical activity, posture problems, as well as twisted spine, flat legs and obesity. To date, the main causes of osteochondrosis are considered as follows:
- the predisposition of hereditary nature;
- Problems of metabolic processes, intoxication, infection;
- the presence of overweight, irrational nutrition (low lack of fluid consumption of trace elements);
- spine injuries, curvature, inadequate posture, flat legs;
- Being in poor ecological conditions;
- inactive lifestyle;
- Regular weight lifting, for a long time working in uncomfortable poses, an activity in which one often repeats sudden movements, turns and bends;
- Too strong physical activity, overload of the spine due to foot diseases, discomfort of wearing shoes, and load during pregnancy;
- The sudden elimination of constant workouts who exercise, stress, malignant smoking.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis
People with osteochondrosis appear first and foremost. Occasionally, such pain is accompanied by numbness and pain in the limbs. If the therapy of osteochondrosis does not begin timely, one quickly loses weight, then the limbs have atrophy. By lifting too heavy objects during physical exercises and strain, and during sneezing and coughing, pain can become more intense. In the patient, osteochondrosis reduces the amount of movements and muscle cramps are manifested.
Cervical osteochondrosis is manifested because of the properties of the cervical spine. The vertebrae of the cervical region has significantly smaller dimensions than the vertebrae of the other spine. Accordingly, the cervix osteochondrosis is manifested due to constant load on the neck. Symptoms of osteochondrosis of the cervix are expressed as follows: pain in hands, neck, shoulders, headache. This type of disease is characterized by spinal artery syndrome. Thanks to the manifestation of this syndrome, one feels noise in his head, the "fly" blinks in the eyes and the head rotates. Multi -ribbon spots can occur in front of your eyes, and in parallel, a person feels severe pain in a pulsating character. Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are sometimes similar to the signs of angina pectoris, but the patient has no change in the heart of the examination.
In patients with osteochondrosis of the chest spine, the patient feels pain in the chest. Pain can be given to the heart region and other internal organs. Pains for osteochondrosis of the lumbosacral spine feel that the lower back pain that can give the pelvic organs to the feet, the sacrum. They affect their nerve roots, sensitivity disturbance, reflexes can decrease, and hypotension may appear.
Diagnosis of osteochondrosis
The specialist already determines the preliminary diagnosis of osteochondrosis during the patient's initial examination. As a general rule, the doctor-neuropathologist carries out the check. Usually the patient comes with pain, deformation or restrictions. The patient's spine is performed in a standing position, lying down and sitting, and the doctor examines him both in motion and rest. During the examination, the doctor necessarily pays attention to the posture of a person, the properties of his body, the properties of the spine, and the relief of the muscles near the spine. You can complement the patient's control results with information about the deformation of the spine, where is pain and can determine the degree of intensity. In the process of sensation, they also determine how tense the muscles are next to the spine, as muscle tone is accompanied by most diseases and injuries. The possibilities of bending are examined to determine the amplitude of the movement of different parts of the spine. Osteochondrosis, computer tomography, X -ray, magnetic resonance imaging are often used. These methods allow you to find out the extent to which the spine is damaged, to determine, have hidden pathologies, and determine the diagnosis. The doctor can determine how the therapy tactics are the most effective tactic, which is most effective.
Treatment of osteochondrosis
The treatment of cervical osteochondrosis and other forms and complications of the disease are carried out by conservative methods aimed at eliminating pain, restoring the functions of cerebrospinal roots, and preventing dystrophic phenomena in the spine structure.
If all methods of conservative treatment do not have an adequate effect and there are special indications for this, then sometimes surgical methods of osteochondrosis are required for patients. The volume of surgical intervention depends directly on the intense symptoms of the spine and the disease. The severity of the disease also depends on the duration of treatment. As a general rule, the active phase of conservative treatment is primarily about 1-3 months. After surgery, the patient is approx. Recovery for one year. Following the start of conservative treatment, many patients with osteochondrosis increases in pain. This is a reaction of muscles and other formations to treatment.
If the pain syndrome is too severe, it can be stopped relatively quickly for patients with osteochondrosis using physiotherapy methods, drugs and a complex of specially designed exercises. It is important to consider that an important factor affecting the efficiency of treatment is the proper behavior of the patient and the need to observe the elaborate treatment method. For this, the desire to persevere, patience and overcome illness is important. It has been proven to be the most effective in conservative treatment and post -surgery of sanatoriums and medical centers specializing in the treatment of the disease. Complex treatment will be the most effective and efficient in the presence of the necessary equipment and qualified doctors.
In the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, complex therapy necessarily involves physiotherapy, massage, physiotherapy, manual therapy, reflexology and medicines.
One of the most important methods for the condition of the human muscle bone system is physiotherapeutic exercises. The patient regularly performs a certain amount of exercise, during which the nerve roots gradually occur, the correction of the muscle liner, the elasticity of the ligaments and the muscles increases. Special exercises for cervical osteochondrosis also allow for effective prevention of further development of the disease. The main condition is the regularity of all exercises.
For physiotherapy, osteochondrosis is physical factors - magnetic fields, low frequency, ultrasound, etc. - treated with the help of. This technique allows you to reduce the post -surgery rehabilitation period and to strengthen the effects of various drugs. Massage can relieve muscle tension, improve your bloodstream and generally strengthening effects.
Manual therapy is used to remove sharp pain. This technique also allows you to adjust your posture. The pain is also relieved by elimination of the spine - a procedure on special equipment. Reflexology is exposed to reflexogenic zones of the human body and can significantly improve the effects of other methods.
During the worsening of the disease, treatment is used with drugs that remove inflammation, stop pain, and activate metabolism processes. Medicines are administered intravenously or intramuscularly.
The least tangible treatment results are observed when multiple methods are used in the complex. However, when treating cervical osteochondrosis and other forms of the disease, only by the attending physician prescribes them.