The spine is a person's backbone. Carry the weight of walking. Abrasion occurs faster than other parts of the body. A sedentary and sedentary lifestyle aggravates the situation. The causes of the occurrence 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 related. According to the symptoms, the types of disease are distinguished:
- Pain in the arms, shoulders, headache with tinnitus, dizziness, colored spots, goosebumps in front of the eyes with cervical osteochondrosis. It occurs in 25% of cases.
- Chest pain, numbness, pain in the heart, stomach and other organs are signs of damage to the chest 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. Common species - 50% of cases.
- Pain in different parts of the spine is a common osteochondrosis.
Pain is considered the determining factor, there is a feeling of numbness in the limbs, pain, tingling. An unpleasant manifestation is muscle spasm, stiffness of movements, pain that occurs with sudden movements, sneezing, coughing.
Based on the symptoms, the doctor makes a preliminary diagnosis, prescribes special procedures for hardware research: X-rays, tomography, MRI. These are ways to make an accurate diagnosis, determine the presence of concomitant diseases: protrusion, intervertebral hernia.
Symptoms often indicate the later stages in the development of the disease, when surgery is required. Treatment is aimed at eliminating pain, stopping the development of the disease.
Conservative treatment
Treatment for the patient is prescribed by the attending physician, a doctor's advice in difficult cases. Conservative treatment is widespread - treatment methods from different fields of medicine. Conservative treatment of osteochondrosis of the spine includes recreational activities:
- Therapeutic exercise: restores the mobility of the spine, prevention of diseases.
- Manual therapy is a way to relieve muscle spasms, improve blood circulation and metabolic processes.
- Reflexology is a way to relieve muscle spasm, stimulate the production of substances that inhibit inflammatory processes.
- Underwater whirlpool. Water sports drain the spine, heal.
- Traction treatment is a set of techniques that stretch the spine, reducing pressure on the discs and nerve endings.
- Ultrasound, laser therapy, electro, magneto, vibrostimulation: types of hardware treatment that relieve muscle spasms, improve microcirculation.
- Therapeutic diet. The diet is selected so that the body receives the necessary vitamins, trace elements.
- Psychotherapy. Promotes the person's faith in healing, activates the internal resources of the body.
- Medical therapy. Taking medications.
It is best to treat osteochondrosis of the spine in a sanatorium. At home, a person faces the problem of organizing time. There is not enough time to follow the instructions, it is not possible to go on a diet yourself, stick to it. Inpatient treatment is also not ideal: the lack of orthopedic products in the hospital, devices, doctors.
Treatment in special centers, sanatoriums is given in full. The duration of the treatment is not fixed. It will take anywhere from a week to a month to get rid of severe symptoms. It will take more than 3 months for rehabilitation, disk recovery.
Many doctors of the complex of procedures prescribe drugs, hardware treatment. Preparations for the treatment of osteochondrosis of the spine help to cope with exacerbations of the disease. It is justified to take anti-inflammatory drugs with analgesic, antispasmodic, antioxidant action that stimulate microcirculation, contribute to the restoration of nerve and cartilage tissues.
When dealing only with drugs, they forget about the internal capabilities of the body, 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 sufficient, an operative one is prescribed. Sometimes just surgery will relieve the condition. Doctors remove hernias, put new discs in place of worn ones. The rehabilitation period is carried out as usual.
The cost of osteochondrosis treatment is compared with cardiovascular diseases, influenza. To make it cheaper, alternative treatment options are being considered. It is worth buying a device for the treatment of osteochondrosis of the spine, which relieves pain. Procedures can be done at home on your own, with the help of loved ones.
An alternative is traditional medicine. There are many recipes for ointments, decoctions of herbs taken orally, in the form of compresses. Many recipes for different stages, types of diseases.
Self-medication will worsen the patient's condition, so you should consult a doctor before taking the drug. The option of self-treatment is to believe in a cure, to follow the doctor's instructions.
Disease prevention
It is better not to look for a way to treat osteochondrosis of the spine, but to prevent its occurrence. It pays to develop good habits regarding the daily routine, nutrition. Preventive actions:
- Morning massages of the back, limbs: rubbing, kneading, performed independently.
- Gymnastics, exercise. It is worth including swing movements, turns, tilts, jumps in place, pull-ups.
- Workplace workouts. If the job involves a long stay in a certain position, it is worth taking five minutes of distraction every hour or two to do a couple of exercises.
- Swimming is a sport that helps solve spinal problems.
If the disease has managed to develop, then the prevention and treatment of osteochondrosis of the spine must be combined, complementing each other.
An important point is the observance of proper nutrition. It should contain vegetarian dishes, steamed dishes, baked in the oven. The diet should have a lot of protein, not mushrooms. Spices, spices are welcome, salt and pickles are excluded. It is not recommended to drink strong tea, coffee, alcohol, abuse sweet and starchy foods. It is worth eating 5-7 times a day. For one day, eat no more than 2 kg of food, one liter of water. With a lack of vitamins, they are prescribed separately.
An active lifestyle, proper nutrition: the key to the health of the spine, of the body. Treatment is difficult, 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.