Osteochondrosis is a disease of the spine, the main symptom of which is a decrease in the number and disruption of the intervertebral discs.
Osteochondrosis is a fairly common disease among people of all ages. In men and women, spinal pain is most common at the age of 40 years. In old age, osteochondrosis affects 90% of the population. The most common type of such disease is osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. We'll talk about it.
Causes of osteochondrosis
When the aging process starts, the function of the blood vessels, bones and cartilage deteriorates, and with all these indicators, the body still does not get enough vitamins, which makes the process worse.
But there are also non-aging reasons for the disease to appear earlier than usual.
- Overweight. It causes metabolic disorders and overloads the intervertebral disc.
- Heredity.
- Injury.
- Passive lifestyle. As well as being in a position for a long time (leadership).
- Diseases of the musculoskeletal system (flat feet, poor posture). Due to such diseases, the load on the spine is uneven.
- Strong stress on the spine (multiple pregnancies).
Signs of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine
This type of osteochondrosis is more common than others. This is due to the fact that the cervical vertebrae are very close together and have a different structure from the other vertebrae.
Why do the cervical vertebrae move? This is due to their age-related fragility and poor development of the muscular skeleton of the neck.
In addition to pain, dislocation of the cervical vertebrae can also pinch the arteries or a nerve bundle. Because of the different localizations of pain, osteochondrosis can be confused with other diseases.
Here are the other symptoms of osteochondrosis:
- Pain in different parts of the body. The heart, the back of the head, the neck, the shoulders and the collarbones. Weaknesses in the arms and problems with spreading the arms to the side can also occur. This is due to pinching of the nerves in the cervical spine.
- Numbness in the fingers. Tingling sensation on the tips of the fingers and low sensitivity of the hands.
- Feeling uncomfortable when turning your head. Cracking of the vertebrae, lumbago in the neck, dizziness, heaviness in the head or shortness of breath. If these symptoms are particularly acute during exercise, this indicates the initial stage of developing osteochondrosis. All of the above are due to the appearance of bony formations in the neck.
- Vision problems. Deterioration of vision, blurred or flashing black spots. This indicates a late stage of osteochondrosis and is caused by an insufficient amount of blood in the brain.
- Uncomfortable throat. Feeling of a lump in the throat, sweating and difficulty swallowing are signs of the initial developmental stage of osteochondrosis. Frequent nausea may also occur.
Treatment of osteochondrosis
What happens during treatment?
In addition to X-ray examination, needles are inserted into the faceted joints of the cervical spine. Through them, two drugs are injected into the affected joints: a local anesthetic, which relieves pain, and a hormone that further relieves inflammation in the problem area.
This blockade can be a relief for quite some time. However, if the pain returns, provided the blockade has a positive effect, there may be a possibility for radiofrequency ablation of the nerves that relieve joint pain in the future.
Such a procedure is always carried out only in the second stage and leads to a lasting positive effect (from one year to several years).
What are the benefits of treating this type of osteochondrosis?
- It does not require general anesthesia and does not last more than an hour.
- The patient can go home within a few hours after the procedure.
- Minimal risk of complications.
- Weak and elderly patients can be treated this way.
- The recovery period does not exceed 2 days.
To speed up the healing process, we recommend that you attend a postoperative gymnastics course. It is a type of therapy that involves some physical activity after surgery. Each practice is selected individually by your doctor.