Thoracic osteochondrosis: symptoms, causes, diagnosis

Osteochondrosis– a set of dystrophic disorders in articular cartilage. Typically, this disease affects men and women over 30 years of age. But recently it is found even in teenagers.

Depending on the location of joint damage, there are cervical, thoracic and lumbar. In most cases, osteochondrosis manifests itself as severe back pain, headache and dizziness.Osteochondrosis of the thoracic regionIt is less common than cervical, but no less dangerous due to various complications.

Thoracic osteochondrosis: what is it?

With thoracic osteochondrosis, pathological changes in the spine occur in the thoracic region. Intervertebral discs are most often affected. The thoracic region is not as mobile as the cervical region, so the characteristic symptoms of the disease are not immediately noticeable. The diagnosis is already made in the later stages of the disease.

Dystrophic disorders affect the cartilage and connective tissue of muscles, which leads to complications and other serious diseases.

Patients are used to treating osteochondrosis lightly, but if not treated in time, thoracic osteochondrosis can be dangerous to health. Often, the disease affects both the cervical and thoracic spine, which affects the quality of life.

What are the degrees?

Treatment of the disease begins with diagnosis and determination of its stage.

1. In the first stagepeople usually do not notice any changes, they do not feel pain, but the intervertebral discs begin to lose elasticity, characteristic protrusions appear when the disc protrudes into the spinal canal without rupture of the annulus fibrosus.
2. In the second stage- the disease progresses, pain, dizziness and other neurological symptoms appear. Intervertebral discs are less elastic, there is a danger of coming out into the spinal canal with the rupture of the fibrous ring - a hernia is formed.
3. In the third stagepain causes a lot of discomfort and is aggravated by the appearance of a hernia.
4. Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spinethe fourth stagecharacterized by progressive neurological symptoms, the intervertebral discs completely lose their strength and elasticity. Vertebral destruction begins.

Osteochondrosis cannot be identified by external signs, although it often accompanies another pathology of the spine - scoliosis, which is noticeable during visual examination.

What could be the reasons

The cause of disorders in the spine is insufficient nutrition of the cartilage and vertebrae. It is impossible to say exactly why such a malfunction in the work of the body occurs.But there are many factors that contribute to this:

1. Sedentary lifestyle and as a result weak back muscles.
2. Poor posture, uncomfortable posture.
3. Various back injuries, improper lifting of weights (jumping from the ground), heavy physical activity.

4. Other diseases of the spine.
5. Inadequate nutrition, lack of essential vitamins and minerals in the diet, especially calcium, which is necessary for the formation of healthy bone tissue.
6. Pregnancy. Often, women notice signs of osteochondrosis of the breast when the load on the spine increases during pregnancy; in addition, the body often lacks vitamins and minerals due to additional resource costs.
7. Heredity. If you have relatives suffering from this disease, the possibility of developing it increases. In this case, you need to worry about prevention.

Often, when making a diagnosis, doctors identify a combination of factors: sedentary work, frequent improper lifting of weights and poor posture.

Symptoms of osteochondrosis of the thoracic region

In the early stages, the disease does not manifest itself in any way. Often, even before an obvious pain syndrome, neurological disorders (dizziness, spots in the eyes, etc. ) People begin to suspect problems with the spine when pain occurs. Let's consider the main symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis:

1. Sharp, pressing pain in the upper thoracic region, worse after exercise, hard work, or being in an awkward position. It can be accompanied by shortness of breath, cough and breathing problems.
2. Cold feeling in hands and feetnumbness of limbs without any reason.
3. Headache, dizziness, fog in the eyes, blurred vision, feeling tired, lack of air. When the intervertebral discs are displaced, nerve endings and blood vessels are compressed, causing neurological symptoms.

Thoracic osteochondrosis causes patients to feel pain in the heart or stomach, which makes the diagnosis of the disease much more difficult.

These are the main symptoms of intervertebral osteochondrosis. Some patients experience pain in the gastrointestinal tract and heart, which often leads to misdiagnosis. The nature of the pain also changes. For example, some patients experience long-term, non-acute pain -dorsalgiaor, conversely, severe pain that stiffens the muscles and makes breathing difficult -chest.

These sensations can be felt in the stomach area, the patient misinterprets them, and without suspecting that the cause of the pain is osteochondrosis of the breast area, the liver, pancreas, etc. is sent for examination. With the combination of several forms of chondrosis - cervical and thoracic - people complain of the sensation of a foreign body in the throat, which is pronounced after physical exertion or after being in an uncomfortable position.

Complications

• During the development of the disease, accompanying diseases are added to the main disease. Thus, it causes long-term compression of blood vessels in the region of the spinal columnto the failures of the cardiovascular system, especially in serious cases can disrupt the work of the heart.
• Another common complication, especially when the thoracic and cervical forms of osteochondrosis are combined, vegetative-vascular dystonia. Compression of blood vessels and nerve endings disrupts the proper nutrition of the brain, as a result of which patients experience long-term severe headaches, dizziness, a feeling of fog in the eyes, and blurred vision. In advanced cases, fainting may occur due to back pain.
• It is possible from the nervous systempanic attacks, occurring during extreme mental or physical stress, severe fatigue. At these moments, patients note a rapid heartbeat and breathing problems: it is difficult to breathe, there is not enough air.
• It is another complication that causes difficulties not only for patients but also for doctorsintercostal neuralgia.The compression of the nerve roots in the thoracic spine creates a special pain syndrome reminiscent of the sensations associated with heart disease. Patients turn to doctors with heart complaints, which complicates the diagnosis. This disease accompanies various pathologies of the spine, but, as a rule, its symptoms disappear with the start of treatment.

If you do not pay attention to the development of breast osteochondrosis, after a while it will begin to significantly affect the quality of life, limiting activity and range of motion.

Diagnostics

Doctors are prevented from making a correct diagnosis by various symptoms, so they often suspect disorders in the gastrointestinal tract or nervous system. To avoid mistakes, orthopedists or neurologists send x-rays of the thoracic spine, and often an MRI or CT scan is performed to clarify the diagnosis.

An EKG is given to the patient to rule out heart disease. Treatment is prescribed only after diagnosis.

Treatment of osteochondrosis of the thoracic region

Unfortunately, this disease cannot be cured. When pain occurs, changes in the spine cannot be corrected. However, modern medicine can relieve pain and thereby improve the quality of life. Correctly selected therapy and a healthy lifestyle can prevent exacerbations.

Treatment involves several factors working together. Medicines and physical therapy are usually used to relieve symptoms and prevent the condition from worsening. Surgical intervention is necessary only when a disc herniation develops. There are dozens of home remedies, but each one should be discussed with your doctor to avoid making the condition worse.

Treatment with drugs

Medicines for osteochondrosis are used to relieve pain, and anti-inflammatory pain relievers are often used for this purpose. In the later stages or in cases of severe exacerbation, the patient is given an anesthetic block. Take drugs to improve cerebral circulation to relieve neurological symptoms.

Physiotherapy

Effective non-drug methods of relieving pain and tension in the back muscles:magnetic therapy, laser therapy, acupunctureand so on. A positive result will be noticeable only after a few full-fledged procedures. Use only after consulting a doctor!

Massage

The most popular and affordable home method. Massage relieves muscle tension, which relieves pain. The best results can be obtained from professionals, but self-massage of the collar area will also benefit. The effect on the muscles helps to relax the painful area. It is advisable to carry out the massage in courses.

Exercise therapy

The treatment complex for osteochondrosis includes physical therapy. Moderate exercise strengthens the back muscles, improves flexibility and mobility of the spine. Regular physical exercise will help prevent the exacerbation of the disease or even delay the appearance of the first symptoms for decades. Many doctors recommend the method of a doctor who offers his own program to fight against diseases with the help of special sports equipment.

Each treatment has its own methodcontraindications, a doctor's consultation is required before use. In addition, with a complex effect on the disease, vitamin and mineral complexes are used to restore the proper nutrition of cartilage tissue and joints.

What to do in case of exacerbation of osteochondrosis

Exacerbation of osteochondrosis surprises you: you need to go to work, but your back does not straighten, it is difficult to turn your neck, and you feel dizzy. It usually occurs as a result of excessive physical stress, being in an uncomfortable position for a long time (sitting at a computer, working on garden beds, etc. ). Exacerbation is characterized by severe back pain or headache, restriction of movement, dizziness or even fainting.

What measures should you take to eliminate these symptoms? Light exercise, massage and sleeping in the fresh air will help. Severe pain is treated with medication. Medicines are prescribed only by a doctor! When using the drug, improvement occurs within two hours.

Folk treatment

Despite their existence, folk remedies should be used with caution. They all aim to relieve pain. To do this, use various compresses, for example, from raw grated potatoes with honey. The paste is applied to the painful area and wrapped with a film. The compress should be left for several hours, preferably overnight, and then washed off.

Infusions of soothing herbs help to relieve neurological symptoms and manifestations of vegetative-vascular dystonia: chamomile, lemon balm, sage, mint, lingonberry leaf.

There are contraindications, you need to consult a specialist.

When fighting osteochondrosis, only a number of procedures will help: proper nutrition, physical therapy, massage, avoiding excessive physical activity and an active lifestyle. If the disease has made itself felt, then it will not be possible to get rid of it completely, but it is possible to bring the disease into a state of long-term remission.