Cervical osteochondrosis is a disease of the musculoskeletal system, a characteristic feature of which are destructive changes in the discs and vertebrae of the cervical spine. The disease occurs quite often, as the cervical vertebrae during human life constantly experience severe stress and almost constant stress. Every person who cares about his health should know what is cervical osteochondrosis, its symptoms, home treatment of which is quite possible, if a specialist doctor considers it acceptable. But in some cases, hospital treatment is required.
Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
Osteochondrosis develops gradually, regardless of which cervical vertebra is affected. At each stage of the pathology, there will be its own symptoms and signs.
Osteochondrosis of the cervix is a major risk to the body because some patients initially do not attribute the discomfort experienced to serious symptoms requiring a visit to the doctor. The fact is that spinal cord injuries lead to disturbances in the functioning of the central nervous system, causing symptoms and signs that are in no way characteristic of common musculoskeletal system injuries, for example, blood pressure instability. Often the symptomatology itself is quite vague.
The main symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis, which should be given great attention, are:
- Dizziness of a systemic and non-systemic nature. It arises as a result of a sharp pathological compression of the vessels of the brain, a sharp compression of the nerve roots by the vertebrae, and a reflex increase in intracranial pressure.
- Pain in the back of the cervix, sometimes radiating to the shoulder, shoulder blade and various parts of the upper limbs. Attacks of pain and discomfort most often occur after sleep. Often, the pain is accompanied by a characteristic sound of the damaged discs - a crackling sound when you try to move your neck. A sharp tightening of the nerves leads to relaxation of the muscles in different parts of the body, muscle weakness can appear for no reason, for example, in the legs. Sometimes the sensitivity in the cervical area decreases significantly.
- Sharp jumps and drop in blood pressure, closely related to the influence of the central nervous system on the body's blood supply function. Pressure increases significantly with prolonged uncomfortable body position, stress, sharp turns of the head and neck.
If the above signs appear, you should immediately consult a specialist doctor to establish the correct diagnosis and prescribe the most effective treatment.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
Therapy will be prescribed depending on the stage of development of the disease, the period of exacerbation or remission, the intensity of manifestations of symptoms and signs.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is not done quickly, it is quite long. To restore the musculoskeletal system, the body will need a lot of time, effort and the use of complex methods of therapy.
Drug treatment
The complex of drugs, doses and duration of the course are strictly chosen by the doctor depending on many factors: the stage of development of the disease, the age of the patient, the individual tolerance of the components of the drug, etc. The following medications are used:
- Analgesics, pills and injections. They help remove pain syndrome and relieve a person from the anxiety provoked by devastating changes.
- Hormonal anti-inflammatory drugs needed to eliminate the body's aggressive response to bone destruction and pathological effects on muscle.
- Condoprotectors - medical preparations containing active substances capable of restoring bone tissue, causing its regeneration and strengthening;
- Muscle relaxants are pharmacological agents that weaken the intensity of painful muscle tension in the injured spine.
- Synthetic vitamin preparations containing a complex of minerals and trace elements that can normalize metabolic processes and fill nutritional deficiencies with beneficial substances.
- In addition to tablets and injections, various oils and gels can also be used for local action on the skin over the affected area.
- Oral medications help well in complex therapy. They can be warming, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, chondroprotective or complex (containing several types of active substances).
Gymnastics
In the treatment of osteochondrosis, special gymnastics is extremely useful, which includes exercises aimed at strengthening the natural forces of the body, initiating an accelerated process of regeneration and restoring the lost musculoskeletal functions of the spine. In some cases, the usual set of exercises is complemented by various sports such as swimming or yoga. The decision for additional loads for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is made only by a doctor. During physiotherapy exercises, it is forbidden to bend or bend the head, you should try to avoid rotations. A set of exercises for sports is chosen by a specialist doctor depending on the individual characteristics of the patient and the specific clinical case.
Nutrition
Treatment It is imperative that when treating osteochondrosis, the patient must follow a special diet. During illness, the body needs a balanced diet that contains the nutrients needed for a speedy recovery. You should try to get rid of harmful, sweet, fatty, digestible, salty and peppery foods. The menu should contain a large amount of cereals, nuts, dairy products containing calcium, lean meats and fish, fruits and vegetables.
Other complex treatment items
Surgical intervention is used only in the most extreme cases, when the destructive destruction of the spine is so strong that no conservative therapy can restore damaged bones, nerves and discs.
For any pathology of the musculoskeletal system, a course of massage therapy is used for additional effects on the muscles. Massage is performed in an inclined position, face down, extremely rarely in a sitting position - only in cases where the pathology is at an early stage of development. It is better to trust a specialist, as in case of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, self-massage can bring a lot of harm and irreparable side effects. Muscle loads, their intensity, frequency of stroke and stroke in this case are strictly limited.
To relieve the load from the damaged spine, you should try to give the vertebrae and discs an anatomical shape. Modern orthopedic products (orthopedic collars, pillows and mattresses) help to quickly and smoothly return the spine to the desired shape and position without damaging it or creating a negative side effect.
As a rule, the method of treating cervical osteochondrosis in each clinical case combines the complex use of the above methods.