Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis.

Osteochondrosis of the neck is a common spinal disease that affects patients of all ages. It is a degenerative change in the spinal disc that develops in a context of severe stress, use of inappropriate shoes, intense physical effort and malnutrition.

It develops gradually, so the patient may not notice the first symptoms right away.

Another name for this disease is degenerative-destructive lesion of the spine, which affects the vertebral body, the ligamentous and articular apparatus, the intervertebral discs.

With the same frequency diagnosed in men and women, as a rule, it develops after 30 years. According to statistics, this disease affects 50 to 80% of the population.

The main signs of the disease

Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis appear as the pathology progresses. They are most noticeable during an exacerbation. Having noticed the first signs of the disease, it is recommended to consult a doctor, as it is often disguised as other disorders, which complicates timely diagnosis. Patients usually present the following complaints:

• Severe pain in the neck area.
• Noises and congestion in the ears.
• Frequent dizziness
• Shortness of breath, feeling short of breath.
• Nausea vomiting
• Blood pressure drops.
• Frequent fainting or syncope.
• Increased body temperature

The signs of cervical osteochondrosis in men are not very different from those that appear in women. Patients complain of discomfort in the occiput, sternum, and shoulder girdle. You should contact your local neurologist or therapist for a diagnosis.

Pain in the neck

One of the most common symptoms of cervical spine chondrosis is neck pain that affects the back of the head and shoulders. The nature of the pain (painful, sharp, mild tingling) directly depends on the location of the injury and the severity of the development of the pathological process. In the initial stage, this can be a mild discomfort, preventing you from turning your head freely in all directions. Gradually the pain becomes chronic and limits range of motion.

Pain manifests itself as a result of deformation of the vertebrae, due to insufficient blood supply to the neck area. Against the background of this process, spasms, anxiety attacks and panic are observed. A painful sensation in the neck area can radiate to the shoulders or arms. It increases after sleeping, sudden movements, laughing or sneezing. The discomfort is combined with a characteristic crunch when trying to turn or muscle weakness.

Muscle tissue spasm and poor circulation often lead to not only pain, but also a temporary loss of the ability to move the neck. Constant overexertion spreads throughout the head, and the patient begins to complain of migraine attacks.

Noise and congestion in the ears.

Osteochondrosis in the neck is also manifested by a feeling of congestion in the ears, hearing loss and the appearance of noise. All this happens due to insufficient intensity of blood flow to the vestibular apparatus. This complex of symptoms is called cochlear, but doctors rarely associate it with a disorder in the spinal region. Pay attention to the nature of noise and ringing in the ears, they usually intensify when a person is in a position for a long time or tries to change it.

Hearing impaired patients turn to an otolaryngologist. In the presence of concomitant disorders of the condition, such as numbness of the face, limited mobility of the neck, additional consultation with a neurologist is required to clarify the diagnosis and determine the cause.

Headache and migraines

The main symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in men are rarely accompanied by frequent headaches; the female population is more susceptible to them. The vertebrae in this area are constantly exposed to excessive stress, which leads to their gradual deformation, if the muscle tissue is not elastic enough to keep them in a natural position. It is more difficult to identify the cause of pain in the head, since the symptom is not specific. The following reasons provoke an attack:

• Cerebral vasospasm.
• Pinched nerve endings in the cervicothoracic spine.
• Increased blood pressure.
• Acute violation of venous flow.
• Increased fatigue
• Prolonged stay in an unnatural position.

Headache intensifies during the exacerbation period and in the patient, including the man. By nature, it can be constant, dull in the form of seizures, or throbbing. In older people, this symptom requires a lot of attention, since it can speak of an incipient stroke, angina pectoris, heart attack or high blood pressure. Therefore, in the first place, these conditions are excluded before starting treatment for osteochondrosis.

With cardiac pathologies, patients also complain of compression in the chest area, an irregular heart rhythm, which allows the doctor to differentiate the condition in time. Headaches accompanied by nausea, shortness of breath, necessarily require an ECG.

Dizziness

Poor coordination and frequent dizziness often appear when osteochondrosis develops to grade 2 or higher. This is due to degenerative changes in the vertebrae, spasms, pinching of nerve endings. The brain does not receive the required amount of oxygen, which negatively affects the function of the vestibular apparatus. As a result of the deviation of the condition, the symptom is:

• Systemic dizzinessThey appear as a sensation that the whole body is spinning and the objects around it. The dysfunction appears due to the malfunction of the vestibular apparatus, weakening of the muscular tissue and receptors located in the joints.
• Non-systemic dizziness. In addition to instability, patients experience episodes of nausea, an uncertain state in an upright position. Circular rotation is usually absent.

Dizziness is a serious symptom that should be treated immediately by a doctor. In the presence of numbness in the shoulders, paralysis of the muscle tissue of the face, loss of consciousness, emergency hospitalization is required.

Shortness of breath and shortness of breath

Another serious symptom of advanced osteochondrosis in the shoulder area is a constant feeling of shortness of breath. Respiratory problems arise from compression of the nerve endings and receptors that do not transmit impulses from the pharynx to the esophagus. Shortness of breath appears when the vertebrae are displaced, increases in a stressful state, accompanied by a lump in the throat. After taking a sedative, the state of health returns to normal.

Shortness of breath causes root syndrome. Spasm of the diaphragm, affects the depth and rhythm of breathing. The patient becomes stuffy and short of breath, memory and concentration problems appear. Such a symptom in osteochondrosis requires immediate assistance, as it can cause a number of serious complications. The doctor selects the drug individually, taking into account the condition.

Nausea

In the cervical region, there is a large cluster of nerve endings, an artery passes through it that is responsible for transporting nutrients to the brain. With osteochondrosis, intervertebral bulges and hernias gradually form, which affects blood pressure, and as a result, the patient feels an attack of nausea.

Prolonged impairment of normal blood circulation causes vomiting, loss of consciousness, and causes stroke and disability. Therefore, the appearance of a symptom of this type, which is not associated with nutritional errors, requires immediate medical advice.

Increased blood pressure

For cervical osteochondrosis, a characteristic symptom is a pressure jump during the day. For a long time, the increase or decrease in blood pressure is not maintained, which is a characteristic sign of degenerative changes in the intervertebral disc. The daily dynamics of blood pressure is abrupt, since irritation of nerve endings is a reflex and causes short-term spasms of blood vessels. A distinctive feature of increased pressure in cervical osteochondrosis is:

• headache;
• chest discomfort;
• decreased sensitivity in the neck area;
• muscle tension after being in one position for a long time.

All of this is taken into account when making a diagnosis. The rapid deterioration of the condition and sudden changes in pressure are the basis for the hospitalization of the patient and the care of her in a hospital setting.

Visual disability

Osteochondrosis in the cervical spine often provokes such unpleasant symptoms as double vision, blinking, the appearance of "flies". This indicates the severity of the process and requires a visit to a doctor. Against the background of the destruction of connective tissue in the vertebrae, the following diseases can develop:

• Glaucoma. The patient is diagnosed with increased intraocular pressure, damage to the optic nerve. It is impossible to eliminate pathologists completely, just to achieve a stable remission with complex treatment.
• Waterfall. This pathological process leads to the destruction of the lens. The changes are associated with metabolic processes and an acute deterioration of oxygen supply to the brain. The first sign of the disease is the appearance of "flies" before the eyes. Timely initiation of treatment helps preserve the patient's vision.
• Claude Bernard-Horner disease. One of the reasons for the appearance of a lesion is considered hypoxia in the occipital region. The main signs of a pathological condition are a decrease in the reaction of the pupil or a difference in the size of the pupil in different eyes. Some patients complain that they cannot close their eyes completely to rest for a night, and twilight vision suffers as well.

The ophthalmologist prescribes the treatment, after a complete examination. But therapy is carried out only in a complex aimed at eliminating the cause of the violation. Only then can the problem be addressed effectively.

Pharyngeal problems

Degenerative changes in the cervical vertebra cause swallowing problems. The patient complains of a lump in the throat, sweating, foreign body sensation in the throat, itching. The signs indicate a malfunction of the neurovascular trunks leading from the spinal cord. But the symptomatology is not considered characteristic and can be observed with pathological disorders such as inflammation, swelling.

Change in body temperature

Osteochondrosis, as it progresses, becomes the cause of an increase in body temperature. Such symptoms occur when the vertebral artery is damaged, spinal canal stenosis, or disc protrusion. It causes changes in neurosis and concomitant neurological disorders. Against the background of a rise in temperature, there is numbness of the tongue or hands, an inflammatory process in the lymph nodes, a burning sensation on the tongue.

Symptoms of osteochondrosis depending on the stage.

Signs of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine largely depend on the stage of development of the pathology, the compression force of the nerve endings and the process of deformation of the discs. It provokes the appearance of symptoms of compression of the vertebral artery and a violation of blood flow to the brain. Pinched nerve endings lead to serious neurological pathologies. The severity of the signs directly depends on the stage of development of the disease:

1. Initial. Degenerative processes in the vertebral discs go unnoticed by the patient. It is quite difficult to notice the first changes, since these can be mild headaches (felt more strongly in women), neck discomfort, slight deterioration of vision or loss of sensation in the neck area. At this stage, patients rarely go to the doctor, attributing symptoms to fatigue, lack of sleep, or stress.
2. Second stage. As the pathology progresses and the disc bulge appears, more pronounced symptoms appear. The destruction of the fibrous ring affects the movements of the head, they become more limited. In addition, patients begin to complain of constant ringing in the ears, impaired visual function, neck pain with a characteristic cracking sound, swallowing problems, sleep disturbances, and decreased clarity of reflexes. Keeping the head in one position causes great discomfort, which requires a doctor's consultation.
3. Third stage. Intervertebral hernias are formed gradually, the fibrous ring is completely destroyed, there is deformation of the vertebrae, displacement of bone segments, dislocations, instability. The patient complains of acute pain in the neck, pronounced shoulder syndrome, paralysis of the upper extremities, tendon reflexes are not observed, impaired sensitivity of the scalp. This is a serious stage of the disease that requires complex treatment.

Osteochondrosis is a chronic systemic disease that manifests itself in various symptoms. The reason is always hidden in compressed nerve endings, circulatory disorders and deformation of the intervertebral discs. The bulge, hernia and displacement gradually lead to loss of mobility of the vertebra.

Age directly affects the severity of symptoms. The older the patient, the stronger the changes in the connective and bone tissues. This is due to weak muscle fibers, nutritional deficiencies, and chronic inflammatory diseases of the body.

Patient testimonials

Osteochondrosis of the cervical vertebrae is a common disease, as the nerve roots are constantly exposed to stress due to excessive mobility of the segment. Timely detection of pathology prevents serious complications, so many people read the reviews of patients and compare them with their symptoms.

Woman, 35 years old

"We suspected osteochondrosis almost immediately, as I was constantly tormented by headaches and had trouble turning my neck. But the diagnosis was made only after the X-ray. Since the treatment does not give a normal result and the pains still appear periodically , the CT scan is still ahead, it will confirm or deny the progression.

Female, 42

"Doctors could not determine osteochondrosis for a long time because the symptoms echoed with my gastritis. Every now and then I felt bad, but attributed it to nutritional errors. Only after fainting did I go to the doctor and started looking for a The problem. The discomfort in the neck was not very painful in the initial stage, and the pain was felt only as the pathology progressed. The treatment was prescribed only after the CT scan. The treatment is giving results gradually. "

Man, 36y

"Osteochondrosis in the neck developed due to the peculiarities of the profession, but they could not determine it immediately. At first I lowered my eyes, which I immediately attributed to the visual fatigue of the night, and then they began to suffer from dizziness and pain in the neck, but as I was constantly driving and this did not bother me. The diagnosis was already made in almost 3 stages, when the pressure started to jump and the problems started with the health in general. The treatment has not yet yielded tangible results "

It is strictly forbidden to diagnose without laboratory research and apparatus. Any information should only be taken as a note.

Cervical osteochondrosis is manifested by a large number of symptoms, but most of them are easily confused with similar pathologies. Therefore, it is recommended to consider the patient's complaints in a complex and conduct differential diagnoses, which allows the timely identification of the disease and prescribes the correct treatment, including physiotherapy, gymnastics and drug treatment.