How to treat osteochondrosis

Unfortunately, osteochondrosis is already common in people over 30 years old. Degenerative-dystrophic changes in the intervertebral discs and bones of the spine most often occur due to a passive lifestyle, malnutrition, extra pounds, hard physical work, etc. The disease manifests itself with severe symptoms at stages 2-4, when the structure of cartilage tissue is fully restored, stops functioning. Complications of osteochondrosis (protrusions, herniated discs, osteophytes, etc. ) can lead to a reduction in quality of life and disability.

Timely treatment of osteochondrosis increases a person's chances of leading a full life. It is recommended to start therapy in the early stages of their development. In order to stop the development of pathology and improve the general state of health, it is necessary to carry out a whole range of measures: medication, exercise therapy, physical therapy, manual exposure. Surgical treatment is performed only in advanced cases, when there are already complications.

characteristics of the disease

Osteochondrosis of the back begins with the destruction of the intervertebral discs. Under the influence of negative factors, the intervertebral discs compress the cartilaginous lining, violating the integrity of its outer shell. The height of the intervertebral disc decreases, it gradually collapses, then the pathology spreads to the tissues of the vertebrae.

There are many factors that influence the development of osteochondrosis of the spine:

• Sitting in the wrong position for a long time.
• passive lifestyle.
• overweight.
• Hard physical work.
• back injury.
• Common nervous disorders.
• Wrong diet.
• hypothermia.
• hereditary predisposition.
• Wearing shoes with heels, pregnancy in women, etc.

Reference. In stages 1 - 2, osteochondrosis is still curable.

Doctors distinguish 4 stages of osteochondrosis:

• Degree 1 - cracks appear on the fibrous ring, the height of the disc decreases. There is discomfort in the affected area, the back gets tired faster.
• Degree 2 - the height of the intervertebral disc continues to decrease, the muscles, ligaments sag, the mobility of the vertebrae increases. There is pain, especially after physical exertion.
• Degree 3 - the intervertebral discs are slightly displaced, protrusions appear, the likelihood of subluxation or arthrosis of the spinal joints increases. A pronounced pain syndrome appears, mobility is reduced, sensitivity in the damaged area is impaired.
• Grade 4 - Osteophytes appear on the vertebrae, allowing the body to stabilize the spine. Bony growths compress nerves, injure vertebrae, and increase the risk of fibrous ankylosis (fusion of spinal joints).

Important. Osteochondrosis can affect the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar segments of the spine.

The disease of the cervical region is manifested by pain in the neck, upper limbs, cephalgia (headache). In addition, dizziness, hearing and vision disorders, etc. can occur.

Thoracic osteochondrosis is easily confused with heart disease, since the pain syndrome is localized in the chest area.

Symptoms of lumbar osteochondrosis - aching pain, reduced mobility, pain, impaired sensitivity of the lower body.

The clinical picture of osteochondrosis is diverse, so you should not make a diagnosis yourself. See a doctor if you have suspicious symptoms.

The treatment regimen of osteochondrosis

In most cases, when detecting osteochondrosis, conservative methods are used. It is important to conduct a comprehensive treatment to eliminate pain, normalize the functionality of the spine and prevent complications.

The treatment regimen for osteochondrosis is as follows:

• Limitation of physical activity.
• Taking medication.
• Physiotherapeutic procedures.
• Physical therapy.
• Massage.
• Manual therapy.
• stretching of the spine.

Osteochondrosis can be cured only by combining the above methods. The treatment plan for each patient is drawn up separately by a doctor, taking into account the degree of the disease, age and characteristics of the organism.

Effective treatment will help get rid of the symptoms of osteochondrosis in 1-3 months. Then maintenance therapy is carried out for 12 months. This will help consolidate results and avoid relapses.

Chondrosis of the back (stage 1 of osteochondrosis) can be treated without medication. The patient can perform physiotherapy exercises, reduce the load on the damaged back area, use applicators (Lyapko roller, Kuznetsov iplikator), improve nutrition, give up bad habits.

medication

It is treated with drugs recommended to exacerbate osteochondrosis. Medications help relieve pain and inflammation, improve blood circulation in the affected area, and normalize motor activity.

With osteochondrosis, the following drugs are used:

• NSAIDs reduce pain and inflammation.
• Drugs with a vasodilating effect. They are used for muscle tension, blood vessels constrict to expand their lumen and improve blood flow.
• Muscle relaxants relax spasmodic muscles, normalize blood flow, reduce pain, improve mobility, and accelerate tissue repair.
• Chondroprotectors stop the destruction of the cartilage lining.
• Psycholeptics based on herbal or synthetic ingredients calm or reduce emotional stress without inducing a hypnotic effect.
• Preparations based on B vitamins accelerate the recovery of damaged nerve fibers.

All these drugs will help fight chronic osteochondrosis, only they can be taken for medical reasons.

Opioid non-narcotic analgesics are used to relieve severe pain in the acute phase of the disease. Glucocorticoids are used for the same purpose. However, these drugs have a negative effect on the body, so they can be taken as a last resort.

In addition to tablets and injections, with exacerbation of osteochondrosis, creams and gels with a local irritating and warming effect are used.

physical therapy

Complex therapy of osteochondrosis is always supplemented with therapeutic exercises. However, the exercises for different parts of the spine are different.

In order not to overload the neck, other muscle groups should also be involved during the lesson. The training begins with a warm-up and ends with relaxation exercises.

Complex for cervical osteochondrosis:

• Lie on your back, raise your head and fix it for 5-7 seconds.
• Do not change the starting position (IP), put your hands on your shoulders, rotate your elbows in different directions.
• IP is the same, alternately raise your hands above your head and tear off one, and then the second shoulder blade from the floor.
• Press the back of your head to the floor and fix it for 4 seconds.
• Connect the shoulder blades and dwell for 5 seconds.
• Roll onto your side, lean your head on your hands, lift the free limb with your head and fix it for 4 seconds. Repeat for the other side.
• Lie on your stomach, put your hands on the back of your head, raise your head and fix it for 4 seconds.

If you experience severe pain and dizziness, stop exercising and consult a doctor.

Reference. Thoracic osteochondrosis is less common than cervical or lumbar, since this is the least mobile department. In addition, it is strengthened by muscles and ribs.

Exercises for lesions of the thoracic segment of the spine:

• Lie on your back, bend your knees, press them to your chest with your hands, slightly raise your lower back off the floor, tighten your abdominal muscles, hold for 5 seconds.
• SP the same, raise arms, straighten legs, understand the opposite arm and leg, fix. Repeat for other limbs.
• Roll onto your stomach, spread your arms out to your sides. Raise your hands and head off the floor, fix for 3 seconds.
• Get on all fours, raise your head, arch your back on the inhale, lower your head on the exhale, round your back.

Move gently, avoid sudden movements.

For the treatment of lumbar osteochondrosis, the following exercises are used:

• Lie on your back, alternately pull your knees to your chest.
• PI the same, take the right arm and right leg, and then put the left limbs aside.
• Put your hands behind your head, tearing it off the floor while pulling your socks towards you.
• Bend your legs at the knees, straighten your right knee towards your left foot, and then vice versa.
• Do the "bike" exercise back and forth.
• Roll onto your side, swing your leg up.
• PI the same, pull your knees to your chest.
• Get on all fours and alternately move your hands to the side.

These exercises help to stretch and relax tight muscles, increase blood and lymph flow.

There are many more exercises. To prepare a complex that suits you, consult a doctor.

Physiotherapeutic procedures

Physiotherapy helps relieve pain, reduce inflammation, improve blood circulation and trophism.

In the treatment of osteochondrosis, the following physiotherapeutic procedures are used:

• Electrophoresis with drugs helps relieve pain in neurological disorders.
• Electrotherapy improves blood circulation and tissue nutrition.
• Laser therapy reduces inflammation, anesthetizes, accelerates tissue healing and activates biological processes in nerve tissue.
• Shock wave therapy improves local blood circulation, metabolic processes, reduces swelling, pain.
• Detensor therapy - traction of the spine under the weight of your own body weight. Helps get rid of the unbearable pain syndrome.
• Balneotherapy is a complex of procedures using fresh, mineral or sea water. After one treatment, pain is relieved, blood microcirculation improves.

In addition, with osteochondrosis, diadynamic therapy, amplipulse therapy, ultrasound, magnetotherapy and the vibration method can be used.

Reference. Osteochondrosis is treated with bees, this technique is called apitherapy. During the procedure, bee venom is injected into biologically active points to enhance the effect of the complex treatment. Insecticide relieves pain, improves mobility, blood microcirculation, conduction through nerve tracts, increases the elasticity of intervertebral discs.

Manual therapy

In the treatment of osteochondrosis, the patient is shown not only massage, but also manual exposure (soft and hard).

With the help of massage, the specialist normalizes muscle tone, improves blood circulation and restores the activity of nerve cells. The session begins with kneading and rubbing, these techniques help prepare the body for further exposure.

After a warming massage, the doctor proceeds to mobilization and automobilization. During the procedure, it gently acts on the joints of the spine, gradually increasing the amplitude. Automobilization consists in performing movements by the patient himself, under medical supervision. These procedures help to increase the interarticular gap, reduce stagnation of blood in the veins and improve trophism.

To restore the correct position of the displaced vertebrae, the doctor proceeds to the manipulation technique. He performs sharp and quick movements in the affected areas, bringing the vertebrae to their usual place. It helps relieve pain, muscle spasms and improve mobility.

Attention. Manual therapy of osteochondrosis can lead to serious complications (fracture, displacement of a vertebra, damage to nerves, blood vessels, ligaments or muscles). To prevent this, you need to find an experienced specialist.

Hardware treatment and orthopedic equipment

Devices for the treatment of osteochondrosis can be used at home, but only with the approval of the doctor.

In addition, for the health of the back, the patient can use orthopedic aids. A special pillow or roller helps relieve the neck and lower back, it is used during rest or transportation. A medical collar is used to support the physiological curvatures of the neck. Posture correctors, corsets improve posture, relieve the thoracic, lumbosacral section of the spine.

Reference. You can wear corsets and corsets no more than 2-3 hours a day. This mode helps to avoid muscle weakness.

A special belt is used for the lower back. It can be worn at work or during sports.

home remedies

Complex therapy can be supplemented with effective folk remedies. However, cervical, thoracic and lumbar osteochondrosis are accompanied by different symptoms, so different recipes are used to treat them.

Folk remedies for treating the throat:

• Hold burdock leaves over the steam for 5-10 minutes, attach to the neck, fix with a bandage. You can also soak gauze in a decoction of burdock and use it as a compress.
• Make a decoction of birch leaves and apply a compress to the affected area.
• Peel the horseradish root, squeeze the juice, mix with vodka (1: 1), rub the throat.
• Pour 250 g of needles into 1 liter of boiling water and leave for 30 minutes. Drink twice a day after a meal.

Even with cervical osteochondrosis, you can take a bath with coniferous decoctions.

If the chest region is affected, use the following recipes:

• Mix in equal parts dandelion root, mint, birch buds, coriander. Pour 100 ml of boiling water 3 tbsp. l. Collection, cook 5 minutes over medium heat. Add 75 g butter and sunflower oil to the warm mass, cook for another 20 minutes. Rub the warm ointment on your back.
• Grind black radish or horseradish, squeeze the juice, rub the affected area.
• Steam wormwood or linseed, put in a cloth bag, apply to the back of the chest.

At home, you can knead your back with a band massager.

If the lumbosacral region is affected, use the following remedies:

• Drink decoctions of lingonberry leaves, thyme, hop cones, cinquefoil.
• Apply a compress of horseradish juice or raw potatoes.
• Rub the lower back with an ointment made from 200g of melted lard mixed with beeswax and marshmallow root.

Also, with lumbar osteochondrosis, you can wear a wool belt, which will have a warming effect.

Before using any folk remedies, consult your doctor.

Surgical intervention

The operation is prescribed for complications associated with numbness in the limbs, severe persistent pain, involuntary urination or defecation. Surgical treatment is also necessary for cauda equina syndrome (compression of the nerve endings in the lower spinal cord).

Surgical techniques help eliminate the cause of pain and stabilize the spine:

• Facetectomy is the removal of facet joints that compress nerve bundles.
• Foraminotomy - an increase in the lumen of the root canal by removing the osteophyte. After the procedure, the nerve is freed from the injury.
• Laminectomy is the removal of the back of a deformed vertebra that is compressing the spinal cord.
• A laminotomy is used to widen the opening through which the nerve roots pass.
• Discectomy - removal of the affected disc or part of it with an intervertebral hernia. This is a minimally invasive endoscopic operation, after which the patient recovers faster.
• A corpectomy is the removal of the entire vertebra and adjacent discs. The free space is then filled with a bone graft.

Spinal fusion (fusion of the vertebrae) is performed to avoid destabilizing the spine. In addition, special screws, rods and plates are used to fix the vertebrae.

Attention. After the operation, there is a risk of complications: damage to the spinal cord, nerve bundles, infection of the affected area, disturbances in urination, etc. Therefore, surgical intervention is performed only in extreme cases.

Rehabilitation after surgery can take several months. During this period, the patient must give up physical activity and bad habits and follow the recommendations of doctors.

reviews

According to patients, it is very difficult to completely cure osteochondrosis. Those who undertook complex therapy at an early stage of pathology got relief from pain and improved their physical shape. Patients who sought help in advanced stages of the disease still suffer from flare-ups of osteochondrosis.

First review, female, 42 years old

"I was diagnosed with stage 2 osteochondrosis of the neck. First she was treated with analgesics and muscle relaxants (injections, tablets), then she took a chondroprotector and did gymnastics. She also visited a craftsman. After a few months the pain went away. I plan to take the course again to consolidate the result. I do gymnastics every day.

Second review, female, 38 years old

"I started having lower back pain about 2 years ago. When I couldn't take it anymore, I went to the doctor. I was diagnosed with osteochondrosis of the neck, the rheumatologist prescribed medication, physiotherapy, massage. About 2 weeks after starting treatment, the symptoms almost completely disappeared. Now I do gymnastics, I go to the pool for prevention.

Third review, female, 41 years old

"I was diagnosed with osteochondrosis of the neck and a C5-C6 hernia. I took medication, went to massage, osteopath and have been doing gymnastics regularly for 2 years. However, nothing helped, the pain only disappeared for a short time and my hands started to get numb. The doctor prescribed a discectomy, after the operation the condition improved, but not for long. I think you will need treatment throughout your life. "

The most important

As you can see, osteochondrosis requires long-term treatment and self-discipline. Therapy should be comprehensive: medication (in the acute phase), exercise therapy, physiotherapy, massage, manual exposure. The patient needs to change his lifestyle, regularly do gymnastics, give up bad habits, eat right, use orthopedic aids. You can supplement therapy with medical devices and folk remedies, but only with the approval of the doctor. In case of complications, surgery is performed, followed by a long rehabilitation. The patient must strictly follow the recommendations of doctors to speed up recovery.