Cervical osteochondrosis is a disease in which the fine intervertebral pulp, which acts as a shock absorber between the vertebrae, turns into ossified tissue, and roots and blood vessels are involved. These changes are hidden under various manifestations, in which the main feature of the disease of the cervical spine is pain in the cervical region, in the upper back, radiating to the head. Mandatory treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is required.
Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
The disease is characterized by common symptoms.
With cervical osteochondrosis, patients feel:
- attacks of dizziness, nausea, decreased pressure, loss of consciousness;
- lack of air;
- numbness of the tongue;
- angina attacks and other changes in the cardiovascular system.
All these symptoms encourage patients to turn not only to neurologists, but also to other doctors with specialties such as cardiologists, therapists, orthopedists, which greatly complicates the correct diagnosis in the early stages of disease development. The dystrophic process of deviation of cervical vertebral tissue, as a rule, affects people from middle age. This is due to the vertical position of the human skeleton and the separation of static and dynamic stresses.
Symptoms such as pain in the back of the head, shoulders, arms, sternum and retrosternal area indicate the protrusion of nerve endings in the upper spine and lack of mobility of the neck joint, which carries weight, keeping the skull in an upright position.
Effective treatment
Medicine does not stand still. Methods of therapy are different, for this it is important to take into account the stage of pathology (weakness or crisis), the form of the disease (acute or chronic), the manifestation of symptoms - for example, the presence or absence. of pain.
You should know how to cure cervical osteochondrosis and how long it takes to be treated. Treatment includes:
- conservative therapy (drug or non -drug);
- surgical intervention;
- complex method of two methods.
Characteristics of classical therapy
To ensure that osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can be cured, you need to use simple methods correctly - recreational physical education, massage, self -massage. This can lead to an improvement in the well -being of patients who feel pain in the neck with the disease.
But with a prolonged degenerative process, it is good to be checked while in the hospital or in an outpatient clinic. This will help to select an adequate method of treatment procedure.
If this is not possible, then it is important to use light methods - for example, to perform exercises aimed at hydration (filling the interarticular space with fluid due to changes in blood supply to the neck and back of the head).
Improving physical education
By accurately doing therapeutic gymnastics exercises, you can achieve great results. For example, there are many methods for the treatment of neck osteochondrosis, but not all of them are based on improved nutrition of cartilage and bone tissue.
The job of exercise therapy is to restore blood circulation in the altered area. During a visit to exercise therapy, you should not rotate or bow the head strongly, you can only mimic such movements. It seems like everything is so simple, but it works.
To do exercise therapy properly, you need to use physical exercises, excluding:
- prolonged pressure on the neck joint (do one exercise no more than two minutes);
- round, bending, rotation of the neck (such action relieves the development of pathology in the joints and intervertebral discs).
It is useful to do a slight bending of the head, which does not cause movement of all joints, but increases blood flow to them. Such an action is akin to a light nod of the head, in the form of consent. After half an hour, you can do a similar movement with the expression disagree.
It is also useful to do a similar exercise by moving the head forward, while holding the front, and back, trying to also hold the back of the head. All this can be done at home.
massage
Massage the cervical area carefully, without using much force. Any improper action can lead to negative consequences. Movements cover the neck, collar area and upper back. The patient during the massage lies on his stomach or sitting.
Some technical features:
- caressing. At this stage, the top layer of skin is affected. Do this with the palms of your hands or with your fingertips in the direction away from the head, falling to the upper third of the middle of the back. Caressing from the base of the neck can be done in a zigzag pattern.
- Squeezing. The masseur tries to give a more penetrating effect on the tissue in the upper third of the back. In this case, the thumb and forefinger are involved. They move across the neck, covering the skin, which is similar to flushing. It is important to be careful not to touch tissue near the vertebrae.
- Triturasi. At this stage, there is an effect on the deeper tissues. You need to try not to overdo it, so as not to get worse.
After taking a comfortable position, without looking up from watching your favorite movie, you can do the massage yourself. In this case, rubbing, rubbing in a circle on the neck and shoulders is used. An excellent result is if, while massaging yourself, you rub a special ointment that can improve blood circulation, relieving pain in the part being massaged.
Applicator
The applicator is a plastic frame with spikes to act on specific areas of the skin. Lying on it or just using it, the patient provokes irritation to skin receptors, which are responsible for physiological processes in the body.
Many users realize that the applicator is effective and relieves pain temporarily.
It should also be noted that when using the device, work capacity increases, there is a positive effect on skin elasticity, sleep and blood flow, regeneration of joint activity occurs. There are diseases where it is worth abandoning the use of applicators. These are infectious diseases, tumors, skin and vascular properties.
Before you start using the device, you should consult a doctor or try it yourself using the applicator for a short time. When observing, you can see the result in well -being.
Use of orthopedic pillows
An excellent preventative measure in the fight against osteochondrosis is to sleep on an orthopedic pillow. As a rule, the condition of osteochondrosis is aggravated by pressing on the cervical arteries and nerve roots while resting on an uncomfortable pillow.
Special items allow you to distribute a person's position evenly during sleep, which significantly improves the process of blood flow to the head.
To choose the perfect pillow, you need to take into account the anatomical features of a person, the amount and quality of fillers. If the pillow is chosen correctly, then it will bring great benefits to patients with cervical osteochondrosis.
Drugs and medications
These are not all ways to treat cervical osteochondrosis. Medical treatment will also come to the rescue here.
In the treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, the drugs are as follows:
- Analgesics are non -steroidal medications that relieve pain. As a rule, they are taken in tablets or capsules. It should not be forgotten that such drugs can irritate the mucous membranes in the gastrointestinal tract;
- anti-inflammatory (steroids). Hormonal medications that relieve inflammation and thus relieve pain. The most common medications are tablets and ointments containing Hydrocortisone, Prednidazole, Dexamethasone;
- chondroprotectors-drugs that have components in their composition that have a replacement action of elements of cartilage tissue. Taking a long period of time can get good results;
- Muscle relaxation is a drug that relieves tension in the muscles. Often it can be used in surgery and orthopedics as an adjunct to relieve pain. They are taken parenterally under medical supervision. To treat osteochondrosis, it is necessary to use products based on Glycerin, Benzimidazole. They have a large list of contraindications;
- vitamin. As part of the treatment of disease, vitamins have a positive effect on the peripheral nervous system and increase its conductivity. B1, B6, B12 are water soluble vitamins, A, C, D, E, B are fat soluble. There is a practice of using different medications together, linking vitamins and painkillers;
- ointments and gels for external use. One of the very simple treatment methods at home is gels, ointments. They have anti-inflammatory properties, warming, relieving pain. You can hear about them regularly on TV. Because they can be purchased easily in pharmacies, the drugs are used for self-medication, even in cases where there is no confirmation of symptoms of the disease. It is worth remembering that with cervical osteochondrosis they are ineffective.
It should not be forgotten that before starting any treatment, one should consult an appropriate doctor, because the drugs themselves often lead to adverse consequences.
Precautions
It is easier to prevent a disease or delay it for as long as possible than to cure it. Thus, minimizing the factors that manifest themselves during the pathological process is achieved. The foundation of health is adherence to a proper lifestyle. These include the use of moderate physical activity, weight control, systematic warm -up with an inactive lifestyle.
All this depends on the desires of the person himself and on the habits laid down since childhood. But throughout one’s life, different things can happen. This may be receiving spinal microtrauma or congenital diseases of the musculoskeletal system. If the patient has a tendency to develop osteochondrosis, then it is important to pay attention to jobs that have increased physical activity, and also try not to make sudden movements.
If there is an excess weight of more than 10 kilograms, then it can exacerbate the load on the back. If you cannot refuse enhanced physical activity, you will need to:
- carry the load in turns - now on one side of the body, then on the other;
- use a corset to protect your back;
- after finishing work, try to unload the spine. To do this, you should either take a horizontal position, or hang on a horizontal bar.
It is important to try not to expose yourself to sudden changes in temperature and humidity. Increased humidity and decreased temperature have adverse effects. Some tips to help reduce the risk of worsening osteochondrosis:
- for sleep, it is recommended to use not only orthopedic pillows, but also orthopedic mattresses, as they do not interfere with blood flow in the spine;
- systematic swimming;
- proper nutrition.
If there is a diagnosis of spinal osteochondrosis, then sports that increase stress on the spine and have traumatic effects are not recommended. You need to stop running, jumping, lifting weights. You should not take a shower in the bathroom during the exacerbation of osteochondrosis. Following such simple recommendations, using a massage (in some cases), you can ensure a quiet life with a diagnosis of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine until retirement age.