In the modern world, the resonance of cervical osteochondrosis is difficult to overestimate.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 to some degree.
Cervical osteochondrosis develops mainly due to a sedentary lifestyle, which is particularly facilitated by the historical transition of man from physical work to intellectual work, which is also associated with moderate work in a sitting position.
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is a degenerative-dystrophic disease of the cervical spine that leads to damage to the intervertebral discs, which is usually characteristic of osteochondrosis.Since this part of the spine is quite mobile by nature, but also vulnerable due to poorly developed muscle ligaments, a negative impact on the neck or back primarily has a bad effect on the cervical spine.Given that degenerative changes most often develop in the most mobile vertebral regions, nerve endings at the C5...C7 level in the neck region suffer most often.
Since the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are very contradictory, they are not always considered only symptoms of the disease, which often requires the help of specialists working in other fields of medicine.Let's look at them in a little more detail.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its symptoms
Given that the cervical spine is quite compact compared to its other sections, minor 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 blood vessels in this section.Well, osteophytes - bone growths called "salt deposits" in folk treatment, which formed during the development of the disease of cervical osteochondrosis, as a result only lead to a significant deterioration of the course of the disease.
The clinical manifestations, or symptoms, of cervical osteochondrosis can be divided into reflex symptoms and radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis.
Reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Among the reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis is the so-called "lumbago", which is expressed in the appearance of a sharp acute pain in the neck and noticeably increases with any movement.In light of this, patients often adopt a forced, most comfortable head position.In addition, a typical "crunch" may occur during turns or other head movements.
Patients with cervical osteochondrosis often experience headaches of a compressive nature, radiating to the eyeballs or the temporal part of the head.In addition, sometimes the visual acuity may decrease, as if "everything is floating in front of your eyes."
Vertebral artery syndrome can also develop in the case of nerve plexus irritation, which is very often misdiagnosed as a cerebral circulation disorder due to the patient's dizziness.This symptom of cervical osteochondrosis can manifest itself in a sudden movement of the head and is complicated by nausea and possible vomiting.
In addition to the above, the reflex symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis also include heart syndrome, in which feelings similar to an angina attack occur.But this manifestation of the symptoms of osteochondrosis is usually combined with a complex of other signs of the disease, so it usually does not cause difficulties in establishing the correct diagnosis.
Radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
The radicular symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis usually appear due to the compression of the spinal nerve ending - the root.In this case, sensory disturbances affecting motor functions depend entirely on which nerve root is damaged, namely:
- C1 – reduced sensitivity in the occipital area;
- C2 - occurrence of pain in the parietal or occipital region of the head;
- C3 – reduced sensitivity and appearance of pain in the neck area where the spinal root is damaged, possible impairment of speech function due to loss of sensitivity and control over the tongue;
- C4 - pain and reduced sensitivity in the scapulohumeral back region, as well as pain in the heart and liver, with a simultaneous decrease in neck muscle tone and possible respiratory disorders of the respiratory function;
- C5 – reduced sensitivity and pain on the outer surface of the shoulder;
- C6 – pain that extends from the cervical spine to the shoulder blade, the outer surface of the humerus, the forearm, and further from the wrist to the thumb;
- C7 – the same pain as C6, but it radiates from the scapula to the back surface of the humerus, and further from the forearm to the 2...4 fingers of the hand, with a decrease in sensitivity in the area of pain;
- C8 - reduced sensitivity and pain that radiates from the neck to the shoulder and then from the forearm to the little finger.
Cervical osteochondrosis and its treatment
Cervical osteochondrosis is a rather complex and extremely unpleasant disease, the treatment of which requires systematicity, duration and stages.The therapeutic treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is primarily aimed at completely stopping the painful symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis and eliminating inflammation in the neck area affected by the disease.
Patients treated for cervical osteochondrosis are treated with classic painkillers.Although recently, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which effectively relieve pain and reduce the activity of inflammation, are also widely popular in the treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Among other things, chondroprotectors are used in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, which slow down the process of cartilage tissue destruction and, according to many experts, contribute to the process of their regeneration.In addition, 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, because when rubbed into the skin, additional massage of the cervical spine is performed.
Physiotherapy procedures are also combined with traditional drug treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, and the use of magnet therapy with special therapeutic devices is especially effective.In addition to the above, therapeutic massage, physical therapy and manual therapy are also used.But in particularly severe cases of the disease, surgical intervention may be necessary.
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis
Prevention of cervical osteochondrosis is not difficult in itself.Recommended:
- maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle,
- do sports, or at least do morning exercises,
- competent organization of the workplace,
- observance of working and rest hours,
- during prolonged work in a sitting position - warm up several times during working hours and ensure the correct head and body posture during work.
It is also important to choose a comfortable pillow and mattress for sleeping.But for those who already suffer from this disease, it is highly recommended to use special orthopedic products daily for comfortable sleep.