What is Osteochondrosis?

As people get older, many people suffer from musculoskeletal problems.The most common disease in this field of medicine is spinal osteochondrosis.Unfortunately, today it affects not only representatives of the older generation, but also young, energetic people.There are many reasons for this - sedentary work, lack of sports or other physical activity, and so on.

What is that?

Doctors define vertebral osteochondrosis as a whole complex of diseases of the joints and cartilage connecting tissues and organs that develop in each joint, but most often affect the intervertebral discs.

Depending on the location, a distinction is made between cervical, thoracic and lumbar-critical osteochondrosis.Although vertebral osteochondrosis occurs after 40 years, the first signs of osteochondrosis can be seen already at 20 years.

Reasons

There can be many factors that trigger the development of the disease.These include hypothermia, vertebral displacement as a result of injury, and heavy physical exertion.

However, the main causes of spinal osteochondrosis are as follows:

• The habit of arching the back;
• lack of a solid muscle corset;
• Scoliosis of various types;
• Stress, nervous shock, depression, chronic fatigue;
• lack of exercise;
• Frequent lifting of weights;
• Metabolic disorders (the body may lack calcium in the blood, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and many other useful substances);
• heredity;
• Untreated viral infections;
• changes in hormone levels, in both women and men;
• Various back injuries.

Most often, athletes, athletes, builders and everyone whose profession is associated with active physical work are susceptible to osteochondrosis.For those who, on the contrary, lead a sedentary lifestyle, doctors recommend moving more, doing preventive sports and eating right so that the body receives all the vitamins, minerals and microelements it needs.

Symptoms

The symptoms of osteochondrosis directly depend on the affected vertebral region.

• Osteochondrosis of the cervical spineThe spine is accompanied by frequent neck pain that goes to the back and chest, tense neck muscles that can cause pain when touched, swelling and numbness of the tongue, goosebumps and tingling in the neck and palms, a feeling of general weakness in the neck and shoulders.
• Osteochondrosis of the thoracic regionThe spine has the following symptoms: During physical activity, stabbing pain in the sternum, a feeling of chest compression, and intercostal pain may occur.
• Osteochondrosis of the lumbosacral regionSpine is usually accompanied by pain in the lower back, which can radiate to the legs, sacrum and groin, lack of sensitivity in the legs, cold hands and feet and tingling in the lower extremities.

If one or more symptoms of this disease appear, you should immediately consult a specialist, because osteochondrosis can lead to dysfunction of many organs and systems, pinched nerves, as well as migraines, dizziness and insomnia.Lumbosacral osteochondrosis is particularly dangerous, as there is a subsequent risk of developing cardiac and vascular diseases, diseases of the genitourinary system, scoliosis and disc displacements.

Steps

Osteochondrosis develops gradually and has several stages of development:

• In the first phaseIt is still difficult to understand that the disease occurred.The symptoms are not pronounced, the patient only feels mild discomfort.Occasionally, mild pain in the back and lower back occurs, but very often this is due to overwork and increased physical activity.Very often, first degree osteochondrosis is diagnosed by chance during a routine examination of a patient.
• In the second phasePains appear more often and become stronger, and processes of deformation of cartilage tissue begin.Osteochondrosis is easiest to treat in the second stage, as the doctor can already see all the changes in the body.Painkillers can be added to general complex therapy.
• To the third stageDeformation of the spine occurs, scoliosis, kyphosis and other back diseases begin to develop.The aim of treatment is to correct spinal defects and minimize the defects that have occurred.
• In the fourth stageWith osteochondrosis, it becomes difficult for the patient to move, the cartilage tissue thickens, and some vertebrae shift.Pain accompanies a person constantly.Very often, at the fourth stage of the disease, the patient is recognized as disabled.

diagnosis

The doctor can make a preliminary diagnosis based on the above symptoms.First, the doctor checks the condition of the patient's spine in various positions and movement.Hardware diagnostics are then carried out to clarify the diagnosis and clarify possible complications.

The main types of diagnosis of osteochondrosis of the musculoskeletal system include:

• MRI;
• CT (computed tomography);
• X-ray examination;
• Ultrasound (ultrasound examination);
• Examination of arterial vessels of the brain.

After analyzing the patient's condition, the doctor detects possible concomitant diseases such as hernias, radiculitis and displaced intervertebral discs.

The patient, in turn, must remember that the symptoms of osteochondrosis may be signs of another disease.Therefore, the quality of the diagnosis must be the highest, since treatment is prescribed based on the final result.

Consequences

One of the most dangerous consequences of osteochondrosis is complete or partial muscle loss.For many patients, the pain can only be relieved with painkillers.

If you do not contact a specialist in a timely manner, there is a risk of developing a hernia and cholesterol plaques, thereby disrupting blood pressure and oxygen supply to cells.

In patients with the fourth stage of osteochondrosis, cardiac arrhythmias and respiratory tract dysfunction may occur;The organs of vision and hearing can also be affected and coordination of movements can be impaired.

Since osteochondrosis primarily affects the blood supply system, the entire human body is at risk.It is worth noting that people with metabolic disorders most often suffer from this disease.Osteochondrosis is often accompanied by vegetative-vascular dystonia.

Treatment

There are two types of treatment for osteochondrosis:

• conservative;
• surgical.

The choice of treatment method depends on the severity of the disease, the complications identified and the body's internal strength to recover after surgery.

With a conservative method of treatment, the patient is prescribed a whole range of medications and other techniques, such as massage, therapeutic exercises, exercise therapy.This method of therapy includes taking medications and hardware treatment.

The most common conservative treatment methods are the following:

• Therapeutic physical education, the exercises of which are individually tailored to the condition of the patient's body.
• Acupuncture.
• Massage and hydromassage.
• Magnetic field therapy and vibration stimulation.
• Ultrasound and laser therapy.
• Medication.
• Proper nutrition, which is also individually tailored to the patient.
• Psychotherapy.

It should be noted that if conservative treatment is chosen incorrectly, the patient's condition may worsen.Self-medication for osteochondrosis is excluded.

The surgical method of treating osteochondrosis is aimed at stabilizing the motor activity of damaged spinal segments.In the case of a hernia on the spine, the operation can be performed in two ways: standard with a scalpel or with a laser.The doctor makes the choice together with the patient, taking into account not only his wishes but also the condition of the body.According to statistics, surgical intervention is resorted to in 15% of cases.However, the success rate is only 3%.

Prevention

It should be remembered that no one is immune from osteochondrosis.Therefore, it is better to prevent this disease in a timely manner:

• First of all, you should always pay attention to your posture and keep your back and neck straight even when working at the computer.
• It is also necessary to take enough time for sports or other physical activities in order to strengthen the muscle corset.Swimming exercises are well suited for these purposes.
• Special orthopedic mattresses and pillows can also be a good prevention of osteochondrosis.
• Particular attention should be paid to the method of weight lifting - to relieve the spine of excessive stress, you must first squat down and then lift a heavy object.It should be noted that you cannot lift more than 17 kg at a time.
• The basic principles of nutrition are also important elements in the treatment of osteochondrosis.Food should provide the body with all useful vitamins and minerals, especially during the period of vitamin deficiency.Avoid consuming too much caffeine, alcohol, chocolate, fast food and carbonated drinks.The diet should include vegetables and fruits as sources of fiber and meat, fish and legumes as sources of protein.

Every person must remember that undetected osteochondrosis can be extremely dangerous for the entire body;All organs and systems of the body are at risk.It is necessary to closely monitor the general state of health and carry out check-ups with a specialist every six months.