Osteochondrosis often has a long course. Therefore, the first signs in men and women can appear many years after the onset of the pathology. Since the pathology leads to many complications, timely treatment and diagnosis of the disease will help slow down negative processes in the body.
Consequences of osteochondrosis
Timely diagnosis of osteochondrosis is a need that almost every person faces.
This is explained by the fact that the disease causes a series of specific disorders in the body and as they progress, complications can affect various parts. The most common are:
- Intense headache up to migraine;
- Partial hearing loss;
- Decreased vision;
- Radiculopathy (also known as radiculitis);
- VSD or various autonomic dysfunctions;
- Dysfunction of the genitourinary system;
- Intervertebral hernia;
- Sciatica;
- Spondylosis, osteophytosis;
- Spondyloarthrosis;
- Lumbago and low back pain;
- Spinal stenosis.
These complications develop due to impaired blood circulation and innervation of the spine, which causes a negative effect on internal organs and departments.
In severe cases, a negative effect on the heart and lungs occurs, which can result in heart attack, heart attack, stroke and so on.
First signs
There are some early signs that the condition has started to develop.
Patients very often ignore them, considering them insignificant and associated with lifestyle: prolonged sitting, excessive exertion, heavy lifting.
Usually this is true, but it is these factors that provoke the progress of osteochondrosis.
As a result, it initially manifests itself with different symptoms.
The mild morning stiffness does not manifest itself particularly intensely, but as it progresses it will manifest itself more and more often. The mobility of the affected area may gradually decrease. Also, with intense loads, discomfort will begin to appear. In the first stage, pain as such is usually not observed. We start from the second phase.
Groups of symptoms
The symptoms of osteochondrosis will expand as it develops. Accordingly, doctors divide them into different groups based on the mechanism of progression. In this way it is possible to identify the sections and types of tissue most affected.
Static syndrome
Static syndrome mainly refers to bone tissue disorders. As a result, the shape of the vertebrae changes, which leads to deformation of the spine with the development of various types of curvature. In this case, pathological mobility of the vertebrae is observed. Bad posture manifests itself:
- Kyphosis;
- Kyphoscoliosis;
- Scoliosis;
- Lordosis.
The result of static syndrome is often impaired joint mobility. In advanced cases, the patient is unable to turn his head or straighten completely.
Neurological
The neurological symptom complex is caused by damage to the nervous tissue. At the same time, at first, the sensitivity of some individual areas of the skin is simply impaired. The motor capacity of the limbs and the strength of muscle contractions also decrease.
But the main manifestation of neurological syndrome is pain of varying intensity and localization. It is caused by compression and irritation of the roots coming from the spinal cord. In the first stage, it usually manifests itself simply as local discomfort. As the pain syndrome progresses, it further spreads to the areas of the body innervated by the affected root. Very often there is a feeling of numbness, tingling, goosebumps and reduced skin sensitivity.
Motor changes in this pathology are observed less frequently than sensory ones. Depending on the degree of progression of osteochondrosis, paresis and even paralysis may occur. An example would be paresis or limitation of voluntary movements of the lower extremities on both sides due to lumbar osteochondrosis.
Vascular
Vascular symptoms appear for approximately the same reason as neurological ones. That is, the veins and arteries are compressed by the vertebrae, which leads to the development of the corresponding symptoms.
This effect is most often manifested in cervical osteochondrosis. It is in this section that the maximum number of large ships is present. As a result of the negative impact on them, cerebral hypoxia begins to develop, which can lead to nausea, dizziness, loss of consciousness, hearing and vision impairment.
If the sympathetic tone of the central nervous system changes, irritation of the nervous plexus increases. Since it is located in the spine, the results also affect the blood vessels.
The most common manifestation of this disorder is a fairly prolonged spasm of the peripheral vessels, followed by chronic ischemia and oxygen starvation of the internal organs.
Trophic
The combination of the three previous syndromes can cause other disorders, especially trophic syndrome. With a decrease in tissue nutrition and disruption of the innervation of certain parts of the skin, ulcers may appear. In this case, neurological and vascular factors play the most important role.
Manifestations of pathology
Osteochondrosis can manifest itself with a different set of symptoms. This is explained by the fact that a specific department affects certain areas and therefore the signs of the disease may differ from each other.
Cervical
The cervical spine is characterized by symptoms such as:
- Dizziness and even fainting when you suddenly turn your head;
- Pain in the shoulders, arms, chest, teeth;
- Spots and spots before the eyes;
- Deterioration of the functioning of vision and hearing, ringing in the ears;
- Voice change and numbness of the tongue;
- Headache that usually worsens with movement. Analgesics cannot influence its intensity.
These symptoms can be present both for a long period of time and during flare-ups. Some signs are often confused with other pathologies, for example dental or ENT problems.
Chest
With thoracic osteochondrosis are felt:
- Pain when bending, raising your arms or an arm, between the shoulder blades and in the chest area (often confused with heart pain);
- Increased pain at night, as well as with movement, hypothermia, increased physical activity;
- Increased pain during chest movement (exhalation and inhalation);
- Interruption of innervation of some areas, feeling of numbness and goosebumps;
- Itching, burning, cold sensation in the legs;
- Painful attacks in the ribs when walking;
- Sensation of compression of the chest by a circle, shortness of breath.
Thoracic osteochondrosis in the manifestation of pain syndrome is rich in localization. But it is precisely because of the greater involvement of the chest that many confuse it with heart attack and heart attack.
Lumbar
Lumbar osteochondrosis largely affects the functioning of the internal organs of the pelvis and lower extremities, although it can also cause pain in the chest area. The most common signs of the disease:
- Sharp, aching pain in the lumbar region;
- Increased pain with movement or exertion;
- Pain in the abdominal organs, legs, sacrum;
- Violation of the innervation of the lower extremities;
- Inability to perform certain movements, such as bending and turning;
- The desire to maintain a certain posture.
When the lumbar region is affected, exacerbations occur more often under the influence of some external factors, for example with increased load, heavy lifting or hypothermia. In this case, many people say that "the back is jammed. "The mobility of the department is minimized during a painful attack.
Joints
Osteochondrosis of the joints manifests itself:
- Decreased mobility of the affected area (most often the shoulder, hip or knee joint);
- Intense pain;
- Increased pain when moving or lifting a limb;
- Range of motion is significantly reduced;
- Upon palpation, formations on the joint and soft tissues can be observed;
- Swelling of the affected area;
- Redness, numbness, tingling sensation on the skin.
Due to damage to the joints, a person is forced to take a forced position to reduce the movement of the joint and, consequently, pain. If the symptom persists, it can lead to soft tissue disorders, including atrophy.
Pain syndrome
Pain in osteochondrosis in the early stages is usually temporary. As they progress, they become longer and more intense. The result is the presence of pain in general in everyday life.
The pain is usually annoying, aching in nature. During a flare-up, the symptom is so intense that it can even completely deprive you of mobility, causing muscle spasms.
Forecast
If we talk about prognosis, osteochondrosis itself is an incurable disease. In the early stage, there is an opportunity to provide high-quality treatment and slow down the disease before serious symptoms develop. The more the disease progresses without treatment, the greater the negative impact on the body. As a result, home treatment becomes less effective and takes longer. If the condition persists to the point of serious complications, surgery may be necessary.