How to treat cervical osteochondrosis?

There are different approaches to treating cervical osteochondrosis of the spine.Only the patient can make the choice.Therefore, we invite you to learn how manual therapy of this disease differs and why the methods used by official medicine most often lead to patient disability or the need for surgical intervention.

Let's start with the fact that in the district clinic, where the vast majority of patients with neck pain go, there is no effective treatment regimen for osteochondrosis.This is a degenerative dystrophic disease of the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral discs.It occurs when the nutrition of these fibers is disrupted.Therefore, for complete recovery, it is first necessary to normalize the diffuse exchange between the intervertebral discs and the paravertebral muscles surrounding them.Unfortunately, official medicine does not want to recognize that only this treatment approach creates a positive dynamic in the patient's condition.

It is proposed to use exclusively symptomatic methods of influence.They allow you to relieve the symptoms associated with the process of destruction of the intervertebral discs.This is done deliberately because there are legal deadlines within which the patient must return to work.Human health is not taken into account.The most important thing is to be released from sick leave on time.And for this it is enough to eliminate the pain syndrome.           

In the meantime, it is important to understand that pain is part of a protective mechanism that prevents the final destruction of the disc.Pain syndrome in cervical osteochondrosis can be caused by the following changes:

• excessive tension of the neck and collar muscles (they relieve pressure on the intervertebral discs, protect the radicular nerves and injuries caused by the convergence of adjacent vertebral bodies);
• Inflammation aimed at increasing blood microcirculation in the lesion.However, this actually leads to infiltrative soft tissue swelling and increased pain.
• Changes in the position of the vertebral bodies, reducing the shock-absorbing load;
• Pinching of a nerve fiber (radicular nerves, their branches, nerve plexus, large nerves emanating from them);
• Damage to the paired cranial nerves.

Before treating osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, it is necessary to eliminate all pathogenic factors that provoke the manifestation of the changes described above.Simply put, you need to restore all damaged tissues and create suitable conditions for their regeneration.

Complete treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is possible only with an integrated approach to solving this problem.An experienced vertebrologist or neurologist can develop an individual recovery course.

Causes of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine

There are reasons that lead to the development of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.If the effect of these pathogenic factors persists during treatment and after its completion, there is a high probability of relapse of the disease in the near future.

To understand the process of development of the degenerative dystrophic process in cartilage tissue, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with some facts from anatomy and physiology:

• Intervertebral discs consist of a fibrous ring (a dense and elastic outer covering) and an inner nucleus pulposus (corpus pulposus, which maintains the shape and height of the intervertebral disc);
• They do not have their own circulatory network and can only replenish fluid and nutrient reserves through diffuse exchange with the surrounding tissue of the paravertebral muscles and end plates;
• Endplates are cartilaginous structures located between the vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs.They are covered with capillaries and supply the fibrous ring and the periosteum with nutrients.
• paravertebral muscles support the spine in a vertical position, giving it flexibility and plasticity;
• interspinous yellow ligaments fix the position of the vertebral bodies in the longitudinal direction;
• short transverse ligaments of the spine fix the vertebral bodies in the horizontal plane;
• The front and rear long ligaments fix the entire spine and partially relieve it of the shock-absorbing load.

Degenerative dystrophic changes usually begin when the paravertebral muscles are not exposed to regular physical activity.They lose their ability to completely supply the fibrous ring with diffuse nutrition.It starts to dry out and crack.Its surface calcifies (calcium salts are deposited in cracks) - this prevents the normal process of diffuse fluid exchange in the future.

Then the fibrous ring begins to absorb fluid from the localized tissue of the nucleus pulposus.It has a jelly-like gelatinous structure.Therefore, it easily releases fluid, but at the same time sharply loses its physiological volume.This negatively affects its ability to maintain the physiological height of the disc.

It begins to distribute the shock-absorbing load unevenly.The pressure on the end plates increases.It is in their thickness that the process of sclerosis of the capillary vessels begins.The end plates lose their ability to supply nutrients to the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral disc and periosteum.This is the protrusion phase.

If effective comprehensive treatment is not started at this time, rupture of the annulus fibrosus will soon occur under the influence of physical activity.An intervertebral fracture occurs in the cervical spine.This complication of long-term osteochondrosis significantly worsens the quality of life and performance of a person.

Possible causes leading to the development of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine are:

• Maintaining a sedentary lifestyle without regular physical activity on the muscles of the neck and collar area;
• Overweight and obesity (each additional kilogram leads to a several times increase in the shock-absorbing load on the cartilaginous intervertebral discs);
• sedentary work, which involves prolonged static tension of the muscle fibers in the neck;
• incorrectly composed diet and insufficient consumption of clean drinking water during the day;
• Curvature of the spine and poor posture (e.g. rounded or hunched back, scoliosis, etc.);
• smoking and drinking strong alcoholic beverages;
• Violation of ergonomic rules when organizing sleeping and working spaces;
• Injuries to the neck and collar area;
• endocrine and vascular pathologies (atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus and concomitant diabetic angiopathy, etc.).

All of these possible causes should be addressed immediately.The faster you do this, the higher the chances that the damaged cartilage fiber will be completely restored.As a rule, an experienced doctor carefully collects anamnesis data during the initial examination.He then makes individual recommendations for each patient based on the information collected.If the patient performs them, recovery will be faster and more intense.

Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis – how to treat it

The main symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are:

1. Pain in the neck and collar area (can be stabbing, pulling, tearing, throbbing - depending on what triggered the pain syndrome);
2. Muscle fiber tension, limited mobility;
3. Change in head position, curvature of the spine (compensatory);
4. Headache and dizziness, reduced mental performance (this is a consequence of impaired patency of the posterior vertebral arteries);
5. increased nervous excitability, emotional instability, panic attacks, etc.

Before treating cervical osteochondrosis of the spine, you need to understand what symptoms are associated with what.The use of symptomatic exposure methods is strictly prohibited.This can only lead to a significant deterioration in the patient's condition.

There are many methods of treating cervical osteochondrosis of the spine and dizziness - the choice usually remains with the patient, to whom an experienced doctor explains all the options and prospects for using one or another approach.Therefore, consulting an experienced vertebral doctor is always crucial.

You can now make an appointment with a vertebral doctor at a specialized manual therapy clinic.The doctor will conduct a comprehensive examination, make an accurate diagnosis and tell you how to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine and the resulting dizziness.

How to treat cervical osteochondrosis of the spine at home

Before treating cervical osteochondrosis of the spine at home, you must consult an experienced doctor.In most cases of illness, hospitalization of the patient is not necessary.However, the prerequisite is that you first receive individually tailored treatment.

Typically, treatment begins with several sessions of manual spinal traction.This procedure allows you to increase the height of the intervertebral spaces to the physiological norm.This helps straighten the annulus fibrosus tissue.The compression of the root nerves and their branches is eliminated.The pain syndrome and neurological clinical manifestations disappear.The patient can feel completely healthy.However, complete restoration of the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral discs is still a long way off.

Comprehensive treatment is required aimed at normalizing the processes of diffuse metabolism, improving tissue trophism and strengthening the muscles of the neck and collar area.

This treatment may include the following procedures:

1. Osteopathy to restore normal microcirculation of lymphatic fluid and blood in areas with degenerative dystrophic tissue changes;
2. Massage to increase the elasticity of soft tissue (muscles, ligaments and tendons);
3. Reflexology massage to activate the hidden reserves of the human body to initiate the processes of natural regeneration of damaged cartilage tissue;
4. Physiotherapy, laser treatment, electrical myostimulation;
5. therapeutic exercises and exercise therapy, etc.

The course of treatment is always developed individually for each patient.Therefore, if you contact a specialized clinic, an effective and safe treatment method will be developed for you that will allow you to completely restore all the tissues of the spine.