How to treat osteochondrosis

Unfortunately, osteochondrosis is already a common occurrence for people over the age of 30. 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 with severe symptoms in stages 2-4, when the fully restored cartilage structure will no longer function. Complications of osteochondrosis (protrusions, herniated discs, osteophytes, etc. ) can lead to a decrease in the quality of life, disability.

Timely treatment of osteochondrosis increases a person's chances for a full life. It is recommended to start therapy in the early stages of its development. To stop the development of pathology and improve the general state of health, it is necessary to carry out a whole series of measures: drugs, physical therapy, physiotherapy, manual exposure. Surgical treatment is carried out only in advanced cases, when complications are already present.

Features of the disease

Osteochondrosis of the back begins with the destruction of the intervertebral discs. Under the influence of negative factors, the discs compress the lining of the cartilage, violating the integrity of its outer shell. The height of the disc decreases, 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.
• Frequent nervous disorders.
• Wrong power supply.
• Hypothermia.
• hereditary predisposition.
• Wearing shoes with heels, pregnancy in women, etc.

Reference. In stages 1 - 2, osteochondrosis can still be treated.

Doctors distinguish 4 stages of osteochondrosis:

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

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, headache (headache). In addition, dizziness, impaired hearing and vision, etc. may occur.

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

Symptoms of lumbar osteochondrosis: aching pain, reduced mobility, aches, decreased sensation of the lower body.

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

The treatment scheme of osteochondrosis

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

The treatment regimen for osteochondrosis is as follows:

• Limitation of physical activity.
• Taking medications.
• Physiotherapy procedures.
• Physiotherapy.
• Massage.
• Manual therapy.
• Stretching of the spine.

It is possible to cure osteochondrosis 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 the results, prevent relapses.

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

Medicines

It is treated with drugs recommended for the exacerbation of osteochondrosis. The drugs will help relieve pain, inflammation, improve blood circulation in the affected area and normalize motor activity.

With osteochondrosis, the following medicines are used:

• NSAIDs relieve pain and inflammation.
• Medicines with vasodilator effect. They are used due to muscle tension, blood vessels narrow to expand their lumen and improve blood circulation.
• Muscle relaxants relax spasmodic muscles, normalize blood flow, relieve pain, improve mobility and accelerate tissue repair.
• Chondroprotectors stop the destruction of the cartilage lining.
• Psycholeptics based on herbal or synthetic components soothe or reduce emotional stress without causing a hypnotic effect.
• Preparations based on vitamins of group B accelerate the recovery of damaged nerve fibers.

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

Non-narcotic opioid analgesics are used to relieve intense pain in the acute period of the disease. Glucocorticoids are used for the same purpose. However, these medicines negatively affect the body, so they can be taken as a last resort.

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

Physiotherapy

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

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

Cervical osteochondrosis complex:

• Lie on your back, raise your head, stare 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, tearing one off, and then the second shoulder blade from the floor.
• Press the back of the head to the floor, fix for 4 seconds.
• Connect the shoulder blades, linger for 5 seconds.
• Roll on your side, rest your head on your hands, lift your free limb with your head, stare for 4 seconds. Repeat for the other side.
• Lie on your stomach, put your hands behind your head, raise your head, stare for 4 seconds.

If you feel severe pain and dizziness, stop exercising and see a doctor.

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

Exercises for thoracic segment injuries of the spine:

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

Move smoothly, 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 leg aside, and then the left limbs.
• Put your hands behind your head, tear it off the floor, at the same time pull the socks towards you.
• Bend your legs at the knees, extend the right knee up to the left foot and then vice versa.
• Do the "Bicycle" exercise back and forth.
• Roll onto your side, raise your leg.
• PI the same, bring your knees to your chest.
• Get on all fours, taking turns moving your hands to the sides.

These exercises help to stretch and relax tense muscles, increase blood circulation and lymphatic flow.

There are many other exercises. To create a complex suitable for you, consult a doctor.

Physiotherapy procedures

Physiotherapy helps relieve pain, reduces inflammation, improves blood circulation and trophism.

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

• Drug electrophoresis helps relieve pain in neurological disorders.
• Electrotherapy improves blood circulation, tissue nutrition.
• Laser therapy relieves inflammation, anesthetizes, accelerates tissue healing, activates biological processes in nerve tissues.
• Shock wave therapy improves local blood circulation, metabolic processes, reduces swelling, pain.
• Detensor therapy: traction of the spine under the weight of one's own body weight. Helps get rid of the throbbing pain syndrome.
• Balneotherapy is a complex of procedures that use fresh, mineral or sea water. After a course of treatment, pain is relieved, blood microcirculation improves.

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

Reference. Osteochondrosis is treated with bees, this technique is called apitherapy. During the procedure, bee venom is injected into biologically active points to increase the effect of a complex treatment. Insect venom relieves pain, improves mobility, blood microcirculation, conduction through the nerve pathways, increases the elasticity of the 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 scrubbing, these techniques help prepare the body for further exposure.

After a warming massage, the doctor proceeds with mobilization and self-mobilization. During the procedure it acts gently on the joints of the spine, gradually increasing the amplitude. Self-mobilization consists in carrying out movements by the patient himself under the supervision of a doctor. These procedures help increase the interarticular gap, reduce blood stasis 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 fast movements in the affected areas, placing the vertebrae in their usual position. He helps relieve pain, muscle spasm, improve mobility.

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

Hardware treatment and orthopedic devices

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

Also, for back health, the patient can use orthopedic devices. A special pillow or roller helps to unload the neck and lower back, is used when resting or when carrying. A medical collar is used to support the physiological curves of the neck. Postural correctors, corsets improve posture, unload the thoracic, lumbosacral segment of the spine.

Reference. You can wear corsets and concealers for no more than 2-3 hours a day. This mode will help avoid weakening of the muscles.

A special belt is used for the lower back. It can be worn at work, while playing sports.

Folk remedies

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

Folk remedies for neck treatment:

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

Also, with cervical osteochondrosis, you can take a bath with a decoction of coniferous trees.

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

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

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

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

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

Also, with lumbar osteochondrosis, you can wear a woolen belt, which has a warming effect.

Before using any folk remedies, consult your doctor.

Surgery

The operation is prescribed in the presence of complications, which are accompanied by numbness of the limbs, prolonged severe pain, involuntary urination or defecation. Additionally, surgical treatment is needed for cauda equina syndrome (compression of the nerve endings of the lower spinal cord).

Surgical techniques will help eliminate the cause of the 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 released from the violation.
• 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 nerve roots pass.
• Discectomy - Removal of the affected disc or part of it with an intervertebral hernia. This is a minimally invasive endoscopic surgery, after which the patient recovers faster.
• A corpectomy is the removal of the entire vertebra and the discs adjacent to it. The free space is then filled with a bone graft.

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

Caution. After the operation, there is a risk of complications: damage to the spinal cord, nerve bundles, infection of the affected area, urination disorders, 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, bad habits, follow the recommendations of doctors.

Reviews

According to patients, it is very difficult to completely cure osteochondrosis. Those who performed complex therapy at an early stage of the pathology got rid of pain and improved their physical fitness. Patients who sought help in the advanced stages of the disease still suffer from relapses of osteochondrosis.

First review, female, 42 years old

"I was diagnosed with 2nd degree osteochondrosis of the neck. At first she was treated with pain relievers and muscle relaxants (injections, tablets), then she took a chondroprotector and did gymnastics. She also visited a manual specialist. Afterwards, she took a chondroprotector and exercised. a few months, the pain has disappeared. I intend to resume the course to consolidate the result. I do gymnastics every day.

Second review, female, 38 years old

"I started having 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 drugs, physiotherapy, massage. About 2 weeks after the treatment. start of treatment, symptoms have almost completely disappeared. Now I do gymnastics, I go to the swimming pool for prevention.

Third review, woman, 41 years old

"I was diagnosed with osteochondrosis of the neck, as well as a hernia of C5-C6. I took medication, went for a massage, to an osteopath and exercised regularly for 2 years. However, nothing helped, the pain only disappeared for a while, plus my hands started to go numb. The doctor prescribed a discectomy, after the operation the condition improved, but not for long. I think you will have to be treated for life ".

The most important

As you can see, osteochondrosis requires long-term treatment and self-discipline. Therapy should be comprehensive: drugs (in the acute period), physical therapy, physiotherapy, massage, manual exposure. The patient has to change his lifestyle, regularly perform gymnastics, give up bad habits, eat right, use orthopedic devices. You can supplement therapy with medical devices and folk remedies, but only after the doctor's approval. In the presence of complications, an operation is performed, followed by a long rehabilitation. The patient must strictly follow the recommendations of doctors to speed up recovery.