Osteochondrosis is a disease when the vertebrae are damaged, which causes compression of the intervertebral discs. This causes pain due to stretched nerve fibers. Narrowing of blood flow leads to disruption of internal organs. When this disease manifests itself in the cervical spine, it affects the blood supply of the soft tissues of the head and brain, disrupting the passage of nerve impulses to the central nervous system.
Why does cervical osteochondrosis occur?
This condition can be caused by:
- Hereditary tendency to decrease the volume of intervertebral discs.
- Back, neck or limb injuries.
- Weakening of skeletal muscles.
- difficult working conditions.
- Improper or excessive weight training.
- Infectious diseases.
- Shoes that cause changes in gait that increase the load on the spine.
- Unbalanced diet.
- genetic diseases.
Most of the causes of provoking cervical osteochondrosis and its symptoms can be prevented.It is necessary to create suitable conditions for work, as well as to choose physical activities that strengthen the muscles supporting the spine. But this is not always possible in time, because a person rarely thinks about a problem that does not exist yet. Therefore, you should know what are the most common signs of osteochondrosis of the neck:
- decreased range of motion;
- constant or excruciating pain;
- Cracking of the vertebrae when moving the head;
- headache that does not go away with medication;
- numbness of one or more limbs;
- Trembling of limbs or involuntary contraction of muscles;
- dizziness, loss of coordination of movements or consciousness;
- tinnitus (ringing or ringing in the ears);
- problems remembering or using learned information;
- memory loss
- Problems related to the work of the rectal and bladder neck sphincters.
Each osteochondrosis of the neck is unique and affects different functions of the body, so some symptoms may not be present. But patients always have difficulty turning the head, pain and when the condition worsens, headache and dizziness.
How to determine the disease at home
The pain of osteochondrosis can be both pulsating, short-term and long-lasting and constantly bothers a person. When the neck is injured, the discomfort spreads to the shoulder girdle and is most often located on the side of the working arm. In this case, the pain can be both in the neck and between the shoulder blades and affect the entire arm.
The difficulty of diagnosis stems from the fact that discomfort can change over time, due to changes in body position, stress or other reasons. Therefore, the first signs of osteochondrosis can be attributed to overcrowding or muscle strain. But over time, attacks of pain and stiffness become more frequent and intense, which requires determining the cause and starting treatment.
It is quite difficult to independently determine the cause of cervical osteochondrosis pain at home.In order to justify suspicions of osteochondrosis, it is necessary to exclude other options. Most often, pain is caused by muscle tension, wrong posture while sleeping or at work. Therefore, it is necessary to improve these conditions in order to understand whether they are the primary source of unpleasant sensations.
If neck problems persist, then this is a serious symptom that may indicate osteochondrosis or other diseases such as:
- tumors;
- infections;
- Compression of nerve roots.
Therefore, you should consult a doctor and take an X-ray. This will let you know if there are any injuries or other signs of external influences.
After it became known that the neck is suffering from osteochondrosis, despite the methods of obtaining information, it is still unclear what caused this disease. You can independently determine only the violation of working conditions, current load and damage. Other diseases can be recognized only after a complete examination - this is necessary, because an infection that damages the spinal column or other similar disorders poses a serious threat to health and life.
How to treat osteochondrosis with medicines and folk remedies
After the diagnosis, you should receive a treatment plan that the doctor will develop or create yourself. When choosing its points, it is important to emphasize an integrated approach to the selection of means and systematic implementation of all recommendations.
What to do with osteochondrosis of the cervical spine:
- use medications;
- use folk remedies;
- conducting physical therapy;
- Changing the way of life to eliminate the cause of the disease.
Medicines include:
- Oral and topical preparations that relieve pain and reduce inflammation, but do not contain steroid substances.
- Painkillers containing corticosteroids.
- Muscle relaxants.
- Antidepressants (if the work of the central nervous system is suppressed, which caused a disturbance of the emotional background).
- Anti-inflammatory ointments.
- Plaster for pain relief.
Folk methods include:
- Herbal decoctions and infusions are used orally. The effect of funds depends on the raw materials used for them. These can be both general strengthening compounds that saturate the body with useful substances, as well as pain relievers or anti-inflammatory drugs.
- Compresses - most often heated to relieve neck muscle spasm and return the spine to its original position.
- Rubbing - rubbing folk remedies into the skin, often combined with massage or self-massage. It has a different direction of action, but is most often used to relieve pain, warm up and relax muscles.
Physiotherapy includes:
- Massage performed by a medical specialist – medical procedures have a positive effect on the spinal column and back muscles. In the case of neck disorders, you cannot use a massage therapist who specializes only in relaxation sessions.
- Self-massage - properly performed actions help to warm the neck muscles, relieve spasms and restore blood circulation in the cervical and shoulder areas.
- Improving working conditions, choosing furniture to maintain the correct posture and when working while sitting - frequent breaks during which physical movements are performed.
- Increasing the number of walks, using shoes with shock-absorbing soles. Walking helps to create the right load on the back, especially in the lumbar region, due to which the clamps in the skeletal muscles are released and the spine returns to the anatomically correct position.
- Conducting a warm-up in the morning, including both neck and shoulder girdle exercises and affecting other parts of the body. In this case, all movements are done only with own weight, or in rare cases, light dumbbells are allowed.
- Sauna or bath - a visit to the steam room 10-12 times per course can significantly reduce tension in the back muscles and activate metabolic processes in the body.
- Procedures prescribed by a doctor and carried out with the help of special equipment (electrophoresis, etc. ).
In addition, swimming in the pool is a good way to maintain optimal muscle tone, relieve spasms and eliminate atrophy. This should be done continuously and should start as soon as the inflammation stops. The first visits should be given a moderate load on the shoulder girdle, after which it should be gradually increased until swimming becomes a full-fledged exercise.
Taking into account the doctor's recommendations, remission occurs quite quickly, if the disease has not turned into a moderate or severe form. But it is important to remember that even complete disappearance of symptoms is not a sign of cure.