Osteochondrosis is a disease caused by degenerative changes in vertebrae, intervertebral discs and ligaments. People after 30 years are more susceptible to the disease, but the initial manifestations of the disease may appear in adolescence.
80-90% of the population faces this ailment.
Symptoms of the disease
Depending on the location of the pathological approach, 3 forms of the disease are distinguished:
- Osteochondrosis of the cervical region
- Osteochondrosis of the thoracic region
- Osteochondrosis of the lumbar region
With the damage to the cervical column, the patient's complaints are associated with insufficient nutrition of the brain due to blood vessels. The most common complaint is severe headache and dizziness. In addition, patients are worried:
- Blood pressure board
- MOVEMENT COORDINATION DISORDERS AND MARCHING
- Decrease in visual acuity;
- Helping deterioration, playing in the ears
- Rumor or rum
- A snoring in a dream is a constant sign of the neck muscles.
When compressing nerves, numbness and fingertips, weakness is produced in the limbs.
If the nerves are infringed, severe neck pain, pain in the scalp, throat pain, teeth. The pain extends to the shoulders and limb.
The symptom of the osteochondrosis of the thoracic region is also the pain - intercostal neuralgia. The pain is due to the compression of the nerve roots. The pain in the chest is acute, intensifies with cough, inspiration, laughter, moving.
The pain for osteochondrosis of the thoracic region can simulate other diseases, for example, cardiac pain, abdominal pain.
Lumbar osteochondrosis often affects people who have a sedentary work. It is characterized by pain in the lower back, which are given to the buttock and leg. With nerve infraction, numbness and cooling of the legs, loss of sensitivity, stool and urine incontinence are possible.
The causes of the disease
The disease is considered polectic, that is, many factors contribute to the disease. The most common:
- Strong daily charge in the column
- Column injuries
- Metabolic disorders
- Overweight
- Spine curvature
- Hereditary factor
- The natural aging process of the body.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis of osteochondrosis consists of several stages.
Anamnesis collection of disease and life
The doctor makes questions to find out:
- Complaints
- Pain location and discomfort
- When the first symptoms appeared
- Which causes appearance and increase in pain.
- Which helps relieve the condition.
It is important to find out the patient's working conditions, the bad habits that sick throughout his life, whether there were bruises and column injuries, whether one of the closest relatives of the osteochondrosis has.
Inspection and palpation
In the exam, the doctor draws attention to the body's position and posture, to the symmetry of the back and neck, determines the volume of movements in the back, detects painful areas, evaluates the muscle tone, determines the presence of the irradiation of pain, verifies the sensitivity.
X -ray exam
The radiography of the column is performed in two oblique projections, in direct and lateral for more information. Sometimes, X -ray investigation is required with functional samples, inclination, flexion, extension position.
Computed tomography
The CT is a study that allows you to consider more clearly the bodies of the vertebrae, ligaments, blood vessels and soft tissues. An image of one or more segments of the spine is performed. CT allows you to determine the compression of the nerves, the tears and the hernia of the intervertebral discs, its height, changes in the solid cerebral membrane, the instability of the vertebrae.
Magnetic resonance therapy
Magnetic resonance is used to diagnose osteochondrosis with a clear visualization of blood vessels, nerve processes, intervertebral discs.
Complications
Osteochondrosis is a disease not only from the back, as is commonly believed. It affects blood vessels, nerves, muscles. Osteochondrosis causes the development of a series of related diseases, among which:
- Migraine
- Deterioration of vision and hearing
- Intervertebral hernias
- Schmorl nodes
- Radiculitis
- Lumbago
- Sciatica
- Spondilesis, spondilartrosis and others.
Disease treatment
Try the osteochondrosis conservatively, in severe cases, promptly.
Conservative treatment includes a whole complex of therapeutic procedures: massages, physiotherapy exercises, physiotherapy, manual therapy, reflexology, spinal traction and pharmacological treatment.
The medications are prescribed during exacerbations, help relieve pain, inflammation and normalization of metabolic processes.
Risk group
The osteochondrosis risk group includes:
- People who lead a sedentary lifestyle with sedentary work or spend a lot of time driving or on a computer
- People whose work or hobby is associated with weightlifting
- People with excess body mass
- Pregnant
- Women who wear high heels.
Prevention
For the prevention of osteochondrosis, it is important to follow the rules:
- Do not overload the spine, limit vertical loads
- Load, strengthen spinal muscles, knead them
- No
- Avoid lesions and bruises of the spine
- Do not use weights
- Change the body position with a long load and driving.
Diet and lifestyle
The diet for osteochondrosis has no strict restrictions, it can be attributed to adequate nutrition. It is necessary to limit salt and sugar. The main thing is that food corresponds to energy costs. If there is overweight, it is necessary to reduce the consumption of sweets and easily absorbed carbohydrates. Replace coffee with tea, sweets - dried fruits.
Every day you must exercise, which includes: drink, squats, lean towards the sides, the turns of the body, run, walk, balance your legs forward, to the side and back.
Sleeping with osteochondrosis is preferably on a solid surface.
During a long sitting job, you must stretch and turn the body every 20-30 minutes. With a prolonged position, it is important to change the support point from one leg to another.
If you need to load heaviness, you can distribute the weight in each hand, you can wear a backpack with wide straps.
Symptoms
- Headaches
- Hoarse voice
- Urine incontinence
- Blurred vision
- Using weakening
- Shark march
- Snore