Osteochondrosis: what everyone needs to know

Osteochondrosis is a problem of the spine that affects literally every fourth person on Earth, at least according to experts from the WHO Statistics Center.

In the top 5 most common diseases in the world, osteochondrosis occupies a "honorable" third place, ahead only of cardiovascular disease. In 2012, the British Broadcasting Corporation's media giant, the BBC, released medical research data that is simply shocking: Every year, more than 5 million people die from diseases caused by lack of exercise, i. e. a sedentary lifestyle. A veritable lack of exercise pandemic has already affected a third of the world's inhabitants, and the latest results of scientific work show that many health-endangering complaints are by no means onegenetic predisposition or viruses are to blame, but an unhealthy lifestyle. Almost all back problems - intervertebral hernias, osteoporosis, osteochondrosis and many other diseases associated with osteochondrosis - are the result of many hours of sitting, whether in front of the television, at a desk or in thecar seat. About 80% of all reasons why the back suffers and spinal disorders arise relate to elementary degenerative changes in the muscular corset and the lack of full-fledged reasonable physical activity.

Osteochondrosis and spine

The structure of the spinal column in living beings, whether animal or human, is basically the same. However, only humans have the proud title Homo erectus, i. e. Homo erectus. Until recently, it was assumed that upright posture was the main cause of pathological changes in the spine. As if the vertical posture would lead to an incorrect, uneven load on the spine. Static loading, which is most exposed to the lower back and sacrum, which consists of five vertebrae, is most dangerous in terms of destructive effects on intervertebral tissues. dynamic load, whichcharacterized by movements, affects the cervical spine. The structure of the spine is quite complex, it consists of many vertebrae connected by cartilaginous tissue - discs. The intervertebral discs, in turn, are multi-layered rings with a liquid core in the middle that perform the function of absorbing shock when the spine is set in motion. In addition, the vertebrae are connected by a large number of muscles and other tissues. The elasticity of this entire connection system ensures the normal state of the spine. Put simply, the more elastic and adaptable the intervertebral discs, the more flexible and healthy the spine, the less risk there is of being struck by osteochondrosis. Today, the theory that upright posture is responsible for all degenerative diseases of the spine is being questioned. Inexorable statistics convince clinicians that rather inactivity, physical inactivity is a factor causing spinal diseases associated with dystrophy and degeneration of intervertebral tissues. In addition, excess weight, which really increases the load on the intervertebral discs, can also aggravate destructive processes and provoke osteochondrosis. Conclusion: movement is life. The sentence is not new, it seems painfully trite, banal, but requires no proof. A striking example of how physical activity and flexibility can lay the foundation for spinal health are examples of people who regularly engage in gymnastics, yoga, and other types of physical exercise. Nature itself gives children the opportunity to be flexible, because children's intervertebral discs are very elastic, up to 80% of the fluid is only in the core of the intervertebral disc. With age, the amount of life-giving "lubrication" decreases, but it can be maintained by consciously performing simple exercises and observing the elementary rules of a healthy lifestyle. Osteochondrosis is a disease of people who are forced to sit for hours, years orto lie for any reason - on duty or of one's own free will, out of duty, laziness, or simply out of ignorance.

What is osteochondrosis?

Osteochondrosis is a term that includes all degenerative and dystrophic changes in the spine. It should be noted that in the European version of the classification of diseases there is no word about osteochondrosis, there such diseases are classified as rheumatic and dorsopathic. Since 1999, the ICD-10 has defined a group of diseases with typical manifestations in the form of pain in the spine, which are not associated with visceral causes, as dorsopathy. In turn, osteochondrosis, which is called dorsopathy, is divided into three large groups:

1. Deforming diseases, dorsopathy - scoliosis, lordosis, kyphosis, subluxation, spondylolisthesis.
2. Spondylopathy - spondylosis, ankylosing spondylitis and other ossifying dystrophic pathologies that limit mobility of the spine.
3. Other, other dorsopathies are degenerative changes accompanied by hernias, protrusions.

Thus, osteochondrosis or osteochondrosis (from the Greek words - bone, cartilage and pain) is the general name for all problems in the spine caused by degeneration and malnutrition of the paravertebral tissues (degeneration and dystrophy). When deformed, the shock-absorbing disc becomes thinner, flattens, which leads to an overload of the vertebrae and their even greater deformation to such an extent that they begin to go beyond the normal limits of the spine. Nerve roots with such a pathology are pinched, inflamed, pain appears.

Osteochondrosis affects almost the entire back, and depending on which part of the spine suffered more, the disease is called in clinical practice.

The "most popular", known to many, is lumbar osteochondrosis, there is also a definition of cervical, which is second in prevalence, there are sacral, thoracic and widespread osteochondrosis. There are also cross pathologies - lumbosacral or, for example, cervicothoracic.

Symptoms of osteochondrosis can be very diverse, but sooner or later they all increase and manifest themselves clinically. Of course, it is much easier and faster to treat osteochondrosis in the early stages of its development, when the following signs are evident:

• Aching, dull aching sensations in the part of the spine affected by the degenerative process.
• Chronic muscle tension (especially characteristic of cervical osteochondrosis).
• Cracking when turning the body, neck.
• Headaches, including tension headaches (with cervical osteochondrosis).
• Aching pains in the chest, often reminiscent of cardiac pain (in thoracic osteochondrosis).

Osteochondrosis in the inflammatory stage has symptoms that bring a person to the doctor because they cause more pronounced ailments:

• Irradiation of pain in the limbs.
• Numbness of fingers or toes.
• Irradiation of pain in the fingertips of the extremities.
• Severe pain in the spine during simple physical activities.
• Increasing pain with small impacts, tremors e. g. B. when transporting.
• The inability to perform simple tasks that involve turning or tilting the body.
• General restriction of mobility, motor skills.

The factors that can provoke problems with the spine, called osteochondrosis, are very diverse, but the hypodynamia already mentioned comes first. Other reasons are the following:

• Functional - monotonous work with the same posture.
• Biomechanical - flat feet, congenital anomalies in the development of the spine.
• Hormonal - changes in hormone levels due to age-related changes.
• Infectious - dystrophy of the intervertebral environment caused by the inflammatory process.
• Metabolism - overweight or underweight.

Factors provoking osteochondrosis, that is, deformation and dystrophy of the intervertebral discs, as a rule, act in combination and are almost never isolated.

The development of osteochondrosis is divided into the following stages:

1. Changes in disc biomechanics resulting from tissue degeneration and dystrophic changes. This is the preclinical stage in which the signs, if any, are very faint and unmanifest. At this stage, the fibrous ring surrounding the disc begins to stretch or, conversely, shrink.
2. The second stage is characterized by greater instability of the intervertebral disc, the fibrous ring is not just stretched, its fibers are stratified, the ring begins to rupture. Due to the injury of the nerve roots, pain in the spine appears, degenerative changes progress. Collagen tissue continues to degrade, the normal height of the intervertebral space decreases.
3. The intervertebral disc often ruptures completely, this pathology is accompanied by inflammation, herniation and damage to nerve endings. Protrusion (prolapse) causes characteristic pain not only in the damaged area of \u200b\u200bthe spine, but is also reflected in the limbs and nearby parts of the body.
4. The most difficult stage when spondylosis and other compensatory diseases of the spine join the dystrophy. Often the vertebra is flattened to compensate for lost function, and the elastic tissue of the fibrous ring is gradually replaced by scar and bone growths.

Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine

Almost everyone associated with mental activity, from schoolchildren to the elderly, suffers from one form or another of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. Osteochondrosis of the cervical region is considered a disease associated with increased dynamic loads that cause degeneration of the intervertebral discs and their lowering. Hardening and growth of cartilage tissue leads to a violation of the depreciation properties of this part of the spine, head movements - tilts, circular movements, turns become difficult and are accompanied by characteristic signs of osteochondrosis.

Symptoms that osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can cause in the early stages of the development of the disease are nonspecific and resemble signs of other pathologies not related to the skeletal system. The list of manifestations of osteochondrosis, which must be differentiated and specified in order to make the correct diagnosis, is as follows:

• Intense headaches that resemble migraine attacks.
• Headache that extends from the back of the head to the neck.
• Headache aggravated by coughing, turning your head, sneezing.
• Headache that radiates to the chest or shoulder.
• Dizziness, sensory disturbances - double vision, difficulty concentrating. Noise in the ears, in advanced cases impaired coordination of movements.
• Symptoms resembling cardiac pain, especially pain in angina pectoris - pain in the heart, extending to the neck region or arm below the shoulder blade. The pain may increase and is not relieved by taking heart medication.
• High blood pressure-like pain (heavy feeling in the back of the head).

consequences and complications

However, before treating osteochondrosis, like any other disease, it is necessary to find out its causes, which is very difficult with degenerative diseases of the spine. Factors provoking the deformation of the intervertebral discs of the cervical spine are associated with the anatomical peculiarities of this zone. The cervical vertebrae almost constantly experience tension due to insufficient general motor activity. If we take into account the overall "sedentary" lifestyle of more than half of the working population, the problem sometimes becomes insoluble. In addition, the cervical vertebrae are smaller than the vertebrae of other areas of the spine, and the internal canal is much narrower. A large number of nerve endings, an abundance of blood vessels, the presence of the main artery that supplies the brain - all this makes the cervical area extremely vulnerable, even the slightest contraction of the intervertebral spaceleads to injury to the nerve roots, swelling, inflammation and, accordingly, a deterioration in the blood supply to the brain. Often a decrease in mental activity is due to the fact that a person develops osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. There is a historical anecdote from not so distant time when MargaretHilda Thatcher rebuked her staff member by saying: 'Your problem is not a headache or your own view of the issue put to the vote. Thing is, your spine just isn't connected to your brain, John. "This famous quote from the "iron" lady perfectly characterizes the condition that causes osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, when it sometimes happens - the spine does not provide the head with the right "nutrition". As for "nutrition", it's not just thatThe canal of the spinal cord is involved, but also the canal of the artery that runs through the transverse nerve processes. The vertebral artery leads to the skull to supply the cerebellum, and this artery also supplies nutrients and oxygen to the vestibular system. The slightest disruption of blood flow through these channels can either provoke or aggravate the course of the vegetative-vascular syndrome. In addition to VSD, osteochondrosis of the cervical region causes typical symptoms of radicular syndrome (sciatica), when the pain radiates to the pads of the fingers or one finger, the pallor of the skin (marbling) is clearly visible. One of the most unpleasant complications provoked by cervical osteochondrosis is palmar fibromatosis, also called Dupuytren's contracture. In this disease, the aponeurosis (tendon plate) of the palm of the hand is affected and the flexing function of the fingers is disturbed.

Diagnosis of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine

Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is diagnosed by a specialist based on the patient's symptoms and can be confirmed and specified using X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography.

Treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine

Complete healing of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is possible only at the initial stage, but it is possible to save a person from the painful symptoms of this disease, prevent exacerbations and eliminate some pathological changes in the spine. Therefore, we should not forget about the importance of timely treatment of the disease.

How to treat osteochondrosis?

Osteochondrosis is not easy to treat, as a rule, the most comprehensive therapy is prescribed, using all the means of modern medicine. In addition to conservative drug treatment, proven phytotherapeutic drugs, acupuncture, a therapeutic exercise package, and sometimes surgical intervention to eliminate hernias and subluxations of the vertebrae are also used. It should be recognized that osteochondrosis and treatment are two concepts that a sick person will face for quite a long time, sometimes all his life. In addition to the initial stage, aimed at relieving the pain symptom, therapy includes constant restorative, rehabilitation and preventive measures. Complex, multi-component diseases are always treated for a long time. When a diagnosis is made - osteochondrosis, how to treat - this is the first question that not only the doctor decides, but also the patient himself, because with his direct participation and responsible compliance, the fulfillment of all the regulations is often crucial role in recovery.

Treat what?

The list of drugs that are most often used as a remedy for osteochondrosis:

• A complex, effective homeopathic preparation that, like any other homeopathy, needs to be used for a long time (in ampoule or tablet form).
• An effective topical remedy that is good at relieving muscle and joint pain.
• Anti-inflammatory nonsteroidal agent (in the form of an ointment - externally, in tablets - orally).
• Ointment with complex effects from the category of homeopathic remedies.
• The drug in tablet form from the category of NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs).
• A drug from the category of glucocorticoids.
• Ointment from the category of external anti-inflammatory nonsteroidal agents.
• Gel from the category of external nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
• A drug from the category of external anti-inflammatory nonsteroidal drugs.

If we sum up everything that concerns the treatment of such a disease as osteochondrosis, the treatment can be divided into the following stages and types:

1. The use of NSAIDs - nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - is considered the gold standard in the treatment of all degenerative, dystrophic pathologies of the bone and muscular system. The first thing these drugs do is reduce the pain symptom, the second is a significant reduction in inflammation.
2. Medications called myelorelaxants because they can be really effective in relieving muscle tightness and spasms.
3. Traction therapy is a traction treatment. With this rather painful, but effective process, there is a gradual stretching of the tissues, muscles surrounding the vertebrae, i. e. the intervertebral space increases and approaches the norm.
4. Biogenic preparations, vascular means that provide nutrients to dystrophic tissue areas, B vitamins well restore the functionality of a deformed spine.
5. Sedatives that normalize the state of the nervous system. Perfectly relieves muscle tension and nerve endings acupuncture.
6. Physiotherapeutic procedures - electrophoresis, phonophoresis, UHF, massages, mud treatments, balneotherapy, magnetotherapy.
7. Correction of the spine during the recovery period is carried out using manual therapy.
8. Treatment of osteochondrosis includes and with the help of constant exercises from the complex of physiotherapeutic exercises.

In the most extreme cases, when the course of osteochondrosis enters the final stage, surgical intervention is also indicated, which is performed in the area of \u200b\u200bthe localization of the inflammatory process. A hernia is usually operated on, and it is also possible to remove the deformed bone tissue of neighboring vertebrae.

Where is osteochondrosis treated?

theSelf-treatment of almost all diseases is a trend that can be observed in almost all countries, but it is particularly characteristic of the post-Soviet countries, where the traditional health care structure is still in transition. Confused by innovation, often simply out of ignorance, many of us try to manage back, neck or lower back pain on our own. You can call this period the first, albeit not very effective, stage of treatment, since osteochondrosis requires treatment only with the help of a doctor. At the second stage, when independent measures do not bring the desired, lasting result, a person thinks about visiting a doctor, and the question arises, osteochondrosis - how to treat, how to treat, and most importantly, where to treat osteochondrosis? First, you can contact a local therapist, who will most likely refer the patient for examination - X-rays, blood tests and a referral to a neurologist. Secondly, you can immediately make an appointment with a neurologist, preferably before the consultation, have at least an X-ray examination of the entire spine. In no case should you go to extremes and look for an experienced massage therapist, any massage initially involves a preliminary examination of the condition of the body, especially the condition of the spine. The problem of osteochondrosis is also treated by vertebrologists and vertebroneurologists - doctors specializing in diseases of the spine.

Osteochondrosis is a complex disease, but the examples of many people who have overcome even serious spinal injuries prove that everything is possible and achievable. The main thing is that at the first alarming signals that our back gives us, we analyze our motor skills and take appropriate action. You can go to the doctor immediately and start treatment or, if the disease has not progressed, exercise, because as Aristotle, the teacher of the great Alexander the Great, who was extremely active, said: "Life requires and needs exercise, otherwise it is not life".

What does history say about osteochondrosis?

The etiology of osteochondrosis is still not clear, moreover, diseases of the spine, despite the clearly ancient origins of this disease, began to be treated seriously only in the 18th century. Since then, arguments and discussions about the real "enemy" that provokes degenerative disc changes have not stopped. Meanwhile, long ago, even in Hippocrates' time, there were treatises on bone cutting, which suggests that the ancient Hellenes also suffered from back pain. Even Hippocrates himself was so interested in spinal issues that he conducted medical experiments that are questionable from today's perspective: his students diligently tied the patient's arms and legs to a horizontal plane with his back raised, stretching the limbs as much as possible. Then the great healer stood on the sufferer's back and began to walk on it. The founding father of medicine sincerely believed that such fixations, stretches and massages would restore spinal health, which according to the ancient Greek sages was the key to a happy human race. Some systematization of techniques for treating osteochondrosis began only at the end of the 17th century. At the same time, terminology emerged that formalized applied areas of medicine, including bone setting. Two centuries later, she split into chiropractic and osteopathy. The first direction was purely practical, using strength techniques, osteopaths were more theoreticians and researchers. At the interface of these sciences, manual therapy gradually emerged, without which the treatment of osteochondrosis is now almost indispensable.

As for the term "osteochondrosis" that defines the disease, then a typical story happened to osteochondrosis, which is typical of other diseases of unclear etiology. Once it was not called - and lumboischialgia, and sciatica, and Schmorl's hernia, and sciatica, and spondylosis. It took almost a century for doctors to figure out osteochondrosis and come to a consensus.