Many who have encountered osteochondrosis of the cervical spine are interested in the question: "How to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine? " I suggest you look at this.
How to cure cervical osteochondrosis?
Unfortunately, cervical osteochondrosis, like osteochondrosis of other parts of the spine, is a progressive and incurable disease.
Therefore, the treatment of this disease today is very difficult.
The main goals that doctors set for themselves when starting therapy for osteochondrosis are to stop the progression of degenerative processes and not harm the patient, because the neck is bordered by the vital centers of the brain.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis should be prescribed by a neurologist or vertebrologist, but in no case by the patient himself.
Self-medication not only does not bring relief, but is often harmful to health.
For the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, a combination of conservative methods such as drug therapy, acupuncture, manual therapy, massage and various physiotherapeutic procedures are widely used.
Important!In extreme cases, when conservative methods are ineffective or dangerous complications occur, surgical intervention is used.
Correctly selected treatment for cervical osteochondrosis can stop the disease and ensure remission for several decades.
Drug treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
Medicines for cervical osteochondrosis are described as followsgoals:
- anesthetize;
- relax tight neck muscles;
- relief of the inflammatory process in the spine and paravertebral tissues;
- relief of tissue swelling;
- improvement of microcirculation and metabolism in the cervical spine;
- improvement of blood supply to the brain;
- restore and protect the bone and cartilage tissue of the spine.
Patients with cervical osteochondrosis are described as follows:drug groups:
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAIDs) perfectly relieve pain and inflammation. In the acute period of the disease, NSAIDs are used in the form of injections. When the patient's condition improves, they switch to oral administration of drugs. The course of treatment with these drugs is 7-10 days. NSAIDs can irritate the lining of the stomach and intestines, leading to erosions and ulcers. To eliminate negative effects on the digestive tract, proton pump inhibitors are prescribed in parallel with NSAIDs.
- Hormonal agents.A group of glucocorticosteroids that relieve inflammation and swelling in radicular syndrome is used. Glucocorticosteroids are most often used as perineural and paravertebral injections.
- Anestheticsused in the form of paravertebral neuromuscular blockades. With this method of administration, the drugs act directly on the roots of the spinal nerves, relieving pain. To increase the blockade effect, anesthetics are combined with a glucocorticosteroid. The treatment course consists of 5-6 blocks.
- Chondroprotectors.Preparations of this group contain glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, which are components of the cartilage tissue of the spine. Chondroprotectors protect the cartilage of the intervertebral discs from the effects of negative factors and help to restore their structure, thus restoring the lost functions of the spinal joints and reducing the manifestations of osteochondrosis.
- Drugs to improve metabolism and microcirculationin spinal tissues and nerves.
- Vitamins.Vitamin preparations, such as ascorbic acid, retinol acetate, tocopherol acetate, calciferol, thiamine, pyridoxine and cyanocobalamin, improve nerve conduction, reduce the severity of hearing and vision impairment, strengthen blood vessels and have an antioxidant effect.
- Preparations for topical use– Ointments, creams, gels and patches help relieve pain and improve blood circulation in the affected areas.
Also, for cervical osteochondrosis, diuretics can be prescribed to relieve swelling of paravertebral tissues and nerves, muscle relaxants to relax spasmodic neck muscles, and calcium supplements.
Therapeutic exercises for cervical osteochondrosis
How to treat osteochondrosis? Therapeutic exercises (physical therapy for cervical osteochondrosis) are a specially designed set of exercises based on physiological body movements that can reduce back pain, improve blood flow and tissue metabolism, and restore normal configuration and mobility ofspine.
Interesting!Therapeutic exercises are an effective tool for the treatment and prevention of cervical osteochondrosis.
Physiotherapy exercises and gymnastics can only be prescribed by a doctor of physical therapy after studying the results of a spine examination and only after the acute pain has been alleviated.
Contraindications for physical therapy and gymnastics may include:
- diseases in the acute phase;
- acute infectious diseases;
- acute myocardial infarction;
- malignant and benign neoplasms;
- aortic aneurysm;
- cardiac aneurysm;
- blood coagulation disorder;
- heart rhythm disturbance;
- high blood pressure;
- myopia of the eyes;
- severe forms of diabetes.
Physiotherapy methods for the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
Electrotherapyrepresents a local effect on the cervical spine and paravertebral tissues of the electric field.
The method has a positive effect on blood circulation and metabolism in the affected area. Electrotherapy is contraindicated for people with pacemakers and other metal implants.
Laser therapyinvolves the use of helium-neon rays, which have anti-inflammatory, analgesic and regenerative effects by activating biological processes in the tissues of the nervous system.
Treatment with ultraviolet rays.Ultraviolet rays have pronounced anti-inflammatory, analgesic, regenerative and bactericidal effects.
Also, under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, the synthesis of calciferol (vitamin D) is activated in the body.
The method is not used in people suffering from malignant diseases of the blood and internal organs.
Balneotherapy– is the use of mineral waters and mud in the form of baths, showers, applications and wraps. The chemicals and minerals present in the mineral waters and mud improve microcirculation in the back and affected tissues.
Vibration therapyis the use of mechanical vibrations targeting the cervical spine, which reduce muscle spasm and pain.
There are girdle trainers that can be used both in a hospital setting and at home.
Important!Vibration therapy is contraindicated for people with pustular skin disease on the neck and vibration disease.
Acoustic shock wave therapy,which affect the cervical spine. Thus, pain decreases, metabolism and blood circulation in the neck tissues improve.
There are many more methods of physical therapy. To eliminate the negative impact of physiotherapy factors on the body, a physiotherapist must prescribe and monitor the implementation of the procedures.
How to treat cervical osteochondrosis using manual therapy and massage?
Manual therapyit is called a dosed local impact on the elements of the spine with hands to restore normal mobility in it and eliminate the displacement of the vertebrae and intervertebral discs.
To avoid spine damage, trust your body only to a qualified chiropractor.
Manual therapy consists of gentle adjusting movements, massage and traction of the neck, where the head and limbs are used as levers.
With the help of manual therapy, it is possible to reduce neck pain, activate the autonomic nervous system and increase the mobility of the spine.
Manual therapy cannot be performed on patients with cervical osteochondrosis who also suffer from inflammatory diseases of the spine, oncopathology or have had spinal injuries.
Massage for cervical osteochondrosis can be performed either by a massage therapist or by the patient himself (self-massage).
Interesting!There is acupressure and segmental massage of the cervical spine.
Segmental massage is a massage of paravertebral areas, and acupressure is a massage of special "vital" points that are responsible for individual segments of the spine.
Acupuncture or acupuncture
Acupunctureis a method of treating cervical osteochondrosis by applying needles to the active points of the spine.
The needle irritates these points and the body activates the production of cortisol and endogenous pain relievers, which help deal with inflammation and pain.
Cervical osteochondrosisit is a progressive, incurable disease. With the help of a comprehensive, timely and properly selected treatment, the process of destruction and immobilization of the spine can be stopped.