The spinal column is the support of a person.It bears the load when walking.Abrasion occurs faster than other parts of the body.A sedentary, sedentary lifestyle aggravates the situation.The causes are unknown; there is a group of risk factors.
Before treating osteochondrosis, you should consult a doctor who will conduct an examination and make a diagnosis.If you follow the doctor's instructions, a positive result is guaranteed.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis
Osteochondrosis is a lesion of the intervertebral discs, characterized by destruction.The disease affects one or more discs.Symptoms and treatment are interrelated.Based on symptoms, the types of disease are distinguished:
- Pain in the arms, shoulders, headaches with the appearance of tinnitus, dizziness, colored spots, goose bumps before the eyes with cervical osteochondrosis.Occurs in 25% of cases.
- Chest pain, numbness, pain in the heart, stomach, and other organs are signs of damage to the thoracic region.Diagnosed in 13% of cases.
- Pain in the lower back, legs, groin, impaired sensitivity of the lower extremities, pelvic organs - osteochondrosis of the lumbosacral region.A common type - 50% of cases.
- Pain in several parts of the spine is a common osteochondrosis.
Pain is considered the determining factor; there is a feeling of numbness in the limbs, aching, and tingling.An unpleasant manifestation is muscle spasm, stiffness of movement, pain that occurs with sudden movements, sneezing, coughing.
Based on the symptoms, the doctor makes a preliminary diagnosis and prescribes special procedures for hardware examination - x-rays, tomography, MRI.These are ways to make an accurate diagnosis and determine the presence of concomitant diseases - protrusion, intervertebral hernia.
Symptoms often indicate late stages of the disease, when surgical intervention is required.Treatment is aimed at eliminating pain and stopping the progression of the disease.
Conservative treatment
Treatment for the patient is prescribed by the attending physician, or by a council of doctors in difficult cases.Conservative treatment is widespread - treatment methods from different fields of medicine.Conservative treatment of spinal osteochondrosis includes health measures:
- Therapeutic exercise – restores spinal mobility, disease prevention.
- Manual therapy is a way to relieve muscle spasms, improve blood circulation and metabolic processes.
- Reflexology is a way to relieve muscle spasms and stimulate the production of substances that inhibit inflammatory processes.
- Underwater hydromassage.Water sports relieve stress on the spine and improve your health.
- Traction treatment is a set of techniques that stretch the spine, reducing pressure on the discs and nerve endings.
- Ultrasound, laser therapy, electrical, magnetic, vibration stimulation are types of hardware treatment that relieve muscle spasms and improve microcirculation.
- Therapeutic diet.The diet is selected so that the body receives the necessary vitamins and microelements.
- Psychotherapy.Promotes a person’s faith in recovery, activates the body’s internal resources.
- Drug therapy.Taking medications.
It is better to treat spinal osteochondrosis in a sanatorium.At home, a person faces the problem of organizing time.There is not enough time to follow the instructions; it is impossible to create a diet on your own and stick to it.Inpatient treatment is also imperfect - there is a shortage of orthopedic products in the hospital, equipment, and doctors.
Treatment in special centers and sanatoriums is provided in full.The duration of treatment cannot be determined.It will take a week to a month for severe symptoms to resolve.Rehabilitation and disk restoration will take more than 3 months.
Many doctors prescribe medication and hardware treatment as part of a range of procedures.Drugs for the treatment of spinal osteochondrosis help cope with exacerbations of the disease.It is justified to take anti-inflammatory drugs with an analgesic effect, antispasmodics, antioxidants that stimulate microcirculation and promote the restoration of nervous and cartilage tissues.
When treating only with medications, they forget about the internal capabilities of the body and treat the patient without him.This is a mistake, a lack of medicine.Conservative methods can improve the patient's condition.
How else to treat osteochondrosis?
If conservative treatment is not enough, surgery is prescribed.Sometimes only surgery will alleviate the condition.Doctors remove hernias and install new discs to replace the worn ones.The rehabilitation period is carried out as usual treatment.
The cost of treating osteochondrosis is compared with cardiovascular diseases and influenza.To make it cheaper, alternative treatment options are being considered.It is worth purchasing a device for the treatment of spinal osteochondrosis, which relieves pain.The procedures can be carried out at home independently, with the help of loved ones.
An alternative option is traditional medicine.There are many recipes for ointments and herbal decoctions taken orally in the form of compresses.There are many recipes for different stages and types of disease.
Self-medication will worsen the patient’s condition, so you should consult a doctor before taking the medicine.An option for self-medication is to believe in a cure and follow the doctor’s instructions.
Disease prevention
It is better not to look for a way to treat spinal osteochondrosis, but to prevent its occurrence.It is worth developing useful habits regarding daily routine and nutrition.Preventive measures:
- Morning massages of the back and limbs - rubbing, kneading, performed independently.
- Gymnastics, exercises.It is worth including swinging movements, turns, bends, jumping in place, and pull-ups.
- Workplace workouts.If your work involves staying in a certain position for a long time, you should take a five-minute break every hour or two to do a couple of exercises.
- Swimming is a sport that helps solve problems with the spine.
If the disease has already developed, prevention and treatment of spinal osteochondrosis should be combined and complement each other.
An important point is maintaining proper nutrition.It should contain vegetarian dishes, steamed dishes, baked in the oven.The diet should contain a lot of proteins, not mushrooms.Herbs and spices are welcome, salt and pickles are excluded.It is not recommended to drink strong tea, coffee, alcohol, or abuse sweets and flour.You should eat 5-7 times a day.Eat no more than 2 kg of food and a liter of water per day.If there is a lack of vitamins, they are prescribed separately.
An active lifestyle and proper nutrition are the key to a healthy spine and body.The treatment is complex, but it will help eliminate unpleasant pain.If osteochondrosis is diagnosed, you will have to change your lifestyle forever.
The article was written for general educational development.To establish an accurate diagnosis and prescribe treatment, be sure to consult a doctor.