Osteochondrosis is a common pathology of the spine, characterized by a dystrophic change in the structure of the cartilaginous disks of the vertebrae and their bone basis. To one degree or another, osteochondrosis manifests itself in most people after 30 years. Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are diverse, which often complicates the diagnosis and subsequent treatment.
General symptoms and signs of cervical osteochondrosis
This process affects any of the spine or several at once. The lumbar and cervical vertebrae are most affected by pathologies, as the most susceptible to loads due to the anatomy of the human skeleton. The consequences of spinal osteochondrosis in the cervical region cause the most inconvenience and potential complications, because the neck is an area rich in neuromusive highways, many of which feed the brain directly.
For this reason, clinical symptoms with cervical osteochondrosis are many associated with ischemia of brain areas. In addition, the nerve roots, which provide the sensitivity and motor activity of the hands and shoulder girdle, when squeezing with destroyed vertebrates can give a variety of symptomatic picture.
Signs of neck osteochondrosis depend on which of the body systems are affected by pathology:
- Disrupted blood circulation due to compression of the vertebral arteries determines most of the symptoms and signs from the brain.
- The compression of the roots leaving the vertebrates gives a picture of the lesion of the peripheral nerves.
- Pinching of spinal cord areas is associated with severe neurological pathologies found in advanced cases.
Below, consider the general clinic of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Pain in the back of the head, neck and collar area
This is the most common symptom. Localization of the pain can be expanded, affecting the shoulders, the clavicle area, chest, turning into intense head migraines. The nature of the pain depends on the localization of the lesion and the severity of the pathology. At first, the pain can be quickly transient, gradually becoming chronic, aching. In moments of exacerbations, the pain becomes shooting, with an increased tone of the neck muscles and limited movement of the head.
Often, pain with cervical osteochondrosis can be localized behind the sternum, in which case many patients take this symptom for angina pectoris. Differentiation can be carried out by taking a pill of nitroglycerin - the pain due to osteochondrosis, they are not removed.
Noise, ringing, sensation of congestion in the ears
These symptoms often join a decrease in hearing. These phenomena are associated with a decrease in blood flow from the vertebral arteries to Vestibular. The complex of these symptoms is called a cochlear, or snail syndrome, and it is far from always possible to determine its connection with osteochondrosis in the cervical region. A specific feature for differentiation is that noise, congestion and ringing in the ears are felt when changing the position, after a long stay in one position.
Dizziness
Dizziness is also due to a violation of the blood flow to the organs of the inner ear, which ensures the balance of the body. Nystagm often joins dizziness - arbitrary fluctuations in the eye pupils to the sides.
Air lack
This sensation appears due to irritation of the ends of the diaphragmatic nerve. It is a component of the cervical nerve beam and is involved in the regulation of breathing, its depth and frequency. Patients complain about the inability to breathe in full chest. In some cases, the symptom aggravates to severe shortness of breath and suffocation. For the same reason, breathing stops at night and snoring. The disadvantage of oxygen due to breathing problems is ultimately the cause of increased fatigue, a decrease in concentration and memory problems.
Nausea
It is accompanied by belching air. Also due to problems with blood circulation in some areas of the brain and inner ear. Nausea is sometimes observed with indomitable vomiting, which is caused by movements of the head and body. The consequence of frequent nausea and vomiting is a decrease in appetite, weight loss, alimentary failure.
Problems with vision
"Flies" in the eyes, a decrease in visual acuity, fog in front of the eyes - these are all the symptoms due to ischemia of the area of the brain that is responsible for vision. Patients with osteochondrosis complain less commonly of vision, since the lack of blood supply from the vertebral vessels is compensated by blood flow from the carbon arteries system. Glasses and therapeutic gymnastics for the eye muscles do not solve the problem, usually vision improves after the treatment of osteochondrosis.
What are the most important symptoms of osteochondrosis is briefly told in this video:
Board of blood pressure
An unstable level of pressure is due to impaired blood flow in the oblong brain, which is responsible for the functions of the vascular-motor center.
Sudden fainting, or syncopal states
It occurs with spasm of the arteries of the brain due to the short-term stop of blood flow along the vertebral arteries. From the state of loss of the patient’s consciousness, you can quickly be removed by laying it so that the legs are slightly higher than the head - the flow of blood to the brain allows a person to lead to life. After a fainting attack, reversible problems with speech and movements, due to a brief stop of blood flow, may be observed for some time.
Greenous symptoms
Often it may be the only sign indicating cervical osteochondrosis. They are expressed as a perspiration, dryness and feeling of a lump in the throat, difficulties with swallowing. Symptoms are associated with the compression of the nerve plexus responsible for the innervation of the pharynx. It is necessary to differentiate such manifestations from a similar clinic for inflammation or neoplasms.
Raising body temperature
The rise in body temperature for cervical osteochondrosis is not the most typical symptom, it is rarely and locally observed: in the cervical and collar area, with a slight redness of the skin.
The clinic of osteochondrosis in the cervical spine can be, firstly, of varying degrees of severity, it depends on the stage of development of pathology, also during periods of exacerbations they are brighter, and secondly, to form in certain syndromes.
Symptoms depending on the stage of cervical osteochondrosis
Stage I
The beginning of degenerative processes in the cartilage of the vertebral discs. Symptoms are weak, sometimes it may not be observed at all. The first signs of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine:
- discomfort in the neck, arms, shoulders, sometimes turning into pain;
- headache;
- easy restriction of the motor activity of the neck;
- quickly passing visual impairment;
- Reducing the sensitivity of the skin of the collar area.
Important: these symptoms become more pronounced when tilting the head.
As a rule, in the first stage of osteochondrosis of the cervical region, patients do not go to the doctor, believing that all symptoms are associated with fatigue, stress, age, lack of sleep.
Stage II
At this stage, the protrusion of the vertebrates began, the intervertebral cracks narrow, the fiber of the fibrous ring of the collagen disk is destroyed. There are noticeable painful symptoms of a point nature due to the compression of the nerve trunks, intensifying during the movements of the neck and turns of the head. Here you can already suspect cervical osteochondrosis, the symptoms of which in the second stage are as follows:
- pronounced pain in the neck, sometimes with a crunch;
- The skin of the shoulders and hands loses the sensitivity almost completely;
- headaches are frequent, do not pass for a long time;
- visual impairment with "flies" in the eyes;
- ringing and noise in the ears;
- weakness of the muscles of the upper extremities;
- the clarity of tendon reflexes is reduced;
- shooting pain with dedication under the shoulder blade;
- the feeling of a lump in the throat, problems with swallowing;
- Sleep disorders, usually insomnia.
Long holding the head in one position leads to severe pain. At this stage of the development of the disease, patients are already coming to the doctor for help.
Stage III
The fibrous ring in the disk is destroyed, hernias are formed. In the third stage, there is a deformation of the spine, displacement and dislocations of the vertebrae due to their weak fixation. The symptoms are as follows:
- intensive, acute pain in the neck, collar zone, heart area;
- the sensitivity of the scalp on the back of the head, in the shoulder region, in the hands, up to the complete absence of;
- hernia of the cervical spine;
- paresis and paralysis of the upper extremities;
- Tendular reflexes are practically not observed.
This is a severe stage of the disease in which the patient is no longer able to support his head on his own. The ischemia of the spinal cord and compression of the arteries of the spine lead to a complete inability to move and reduce the forces in the muscles in other parts of the body, as well as to impaired spinal cord.
How to treat cervical osteochondrosis
The described state of the spine is a very serious pathology, which, with neglect, leads to disability, and as a result of deep disorders of cerebral circulation - and death. For this reason, by self -medication, if such symptoms appear, you should not do. Osteochondrosis is treated in a hospital and at home exclusively as a doctor’s prescription. At the initial stages, the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis is conservative, including drug prescriptions: non -steroidal anti -inflammatory drugs, anesthetics, hormonal drugs, vitamin complexes, joint drugs - all this relieves inflammation, pain, improves the trophic of soft tissues and cartilage vertebrae.
In the acute period, drugs are prescribed in the form of injections, as the pain subsides, the patient goes to tablets. Physiotherapy, massage, exercise exercises, usually prescribed at the remission stage, join the courses of drugs. In difficult cases, osteochondrosis is treated with surgery.