There are many diseases characterized by degenerative-dystrophic manifestations, one of which is osteochondrosis. In humans, the signs of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine manifest themselves in different ways, and sometimes it is impossible to think about this pathology. The entire spine is gradually affected, especially in the chest area.
Very often, in addition to pain, other symptoms also appear. Which one you need to understand in more detail, because numbness and injuries of the tongue are a manifestation of this particular disease. Such psychosomatics can confuse anyone, there are reasons for such a disease. We will try to understand the variety of symptoms in more detail below.
degree of disease
Osteochondrosis is characterized by a chronic course with periods of remission and exacerbations, which are very difficult to eliminate. Psychosomatics can push a person to extremes because the pain is particularly intense. Even if you tackle the causes, the disease is constantly progressing, only a certain regime and timely treatment can help. Psychosomatics does not appear immediately, at the first stages a person feels quite normal, and after the second or third attack it becomes simply unbearable.
There are four degrees of manifestation of the disease:
- At the initial stage, the changes are minimal, they occur inside the intervertebral disc. It gradually loses moisture, which eventually leads to the bursting of the fiber capsule. At this stage, not everything manifests itself in any way, changes are visible only on an MRI. At this stage, it is better to treat the disease, while the causes of its occurrence can be reversed, and by starting treatment, the manifestations of the disease can be completely eliminated.
- In the second stage, there is damage to the intervertebral disc and pain can occur. The height of the disc decreases, causing the ligaments and muscles to sag. Instability develops, the vertebrae begin to shift relative to each other. At this stage, a person feels pain, a specific lesion characteristic of osteochondrosis appears.
- In the third stage of the disease, the pain can be more pronounced and is often accompanied by a herniated disc.
- The fourth stage is the last stage in which osteophytes and deformities of the spine are formed. Due to osteophytes, the body tries to reduce the signs of cervical osteochondrosis. After the ligaments begin to ossify and the vertebrae gradually shift.
The reasons why everything happens
In order to better understand the symptoms of the disease, you need to understand what are the causes of its occurrence. All psychosomatics arise primarily from compression of the spinal cord in the spinal canal. But such causes are very rare and can be found in a well advanced degenerative process. The cause of occurrence can be a significant size of the intervertebral hernia, trauma or displacement.
Often, psychosomatics develops due to compression of the roots of the spine. The causes of pain are that it can be compressed by adjacent vertebrae, herniated discs and inflammation.
Often the problem lies in the vessels that are located nearby. Especially often, psychosomatics develops as a result of damage to the vertebral artery, which passes in the thickness of the spine and supplies blood to the posterior parts of the brain.
From the characteristics of the lesion, one can understand the symptoms that have the same manifestations in both men and women.
Symptoms due to spinal cord injury
Cervical osteochondrosis against the background of compression of the spinal cord develops very rarely. Such a condition can cost a person not only health, but also life. In this area, the respiratory and vasomotor centers are in close proximity. And when compression occurs at the level of 3 or 4 segments, a person can become completely paralyzed. If the diaphragm is affected, it often ends with its paralysis and respiratory arrest.
The body temperature is normal, even if 4-5 segments are affected, then paralysis is possible, but breathing will not suffer. If the 5th to 8th segments are damaged, the muscles of the arms and legs may suffer, the temperature will not change either, and there may be dysfunction of the pelvic organs.
When a nerve fiber is damaged
If the nerve plexuses and fibers are damaged, the temperature does not rise either. There is pain in both the neck and chest. It can be permanent and is called cervicalgia, and in the form of attacks - cervical. Attacks occur in the neck, cervical or shoulder girdle, upper thoracic spine. Irritation occurs due to compression of the root, it becomes inflamed, although the temperature remains normal. As a result, the muscles that innervate the roots involved in the pathological process become very tense, numbness occurs.
With cervicalgia, the pain is constant and of varying intensity in both men and women. Psychosomatics are very pronounced in her, seizures can be very difficult to eliminate. Very often everything is dismissed as a simple migraine. But you can endure the pain, although it occurs as a result of a sharp movement, rotation and tilt of the head. Numbness and a characteristic crunch may appear during movement.
With cervicago, the temperature also does not rise, but the pain has its own characteristics. It occurs in the form of "lumbago" or electric shock for no apparent reason. The intensity is so intense that one of the hands can buckle, a person is simply forced to wear a shant collar. Lasting from a few seconds to minutes, then cervicalgia comes in. This occurs as a result of sharp movement or compression of the nerve in the neck or upper thoracic cord, which can cause numbness and mild tremors.
root damage
The main nerves of the upper limb are formed from the roots of the cervical spinal cord, there are three nerves in total: ulnar, radial and median. If osteochondrosis of the cervical spine develops, these structures can be affected, which can cause not only pain and tremors, but also numbness. All of these nerves have mixed fibers that are responsible for sensitivity and motor function. Symptoms can be severe enough to require wearing a shant collar and depend on the type of root affected. There may be numbness or loss of feeling in the 2nd or 3rd finger of the hand, or even paralysis of some muscles. A neurologist can determine exactly where the injury occurred.
Nerve neuralgia of the occiput
This rather uncomfortable condition is caused by damage to the occipital nerves. These structures are formed by 2, 3, 4 pairs of spinal nerves. With damage to nerves as a result of the development of osteochondrosis, the temperature remains normal, severe pain in the head worries, especially in the occiput. Very often in this context patients, and often women, are simply forced to wear a shant collar.
The symptoms are very typical of the disease, if you ask the patient correctly, you can make a diagnosis without special research methods. Everything occurs suddenly and is localized unilaterally, less often it has a bilateral character. For a human being, "lumbago" is like an electric shock, forcing them to wear a shant collar. The attack lasts only a few minutes but can be repeated throughout the day. It all starts at the posterolateral surface of the neck and extendsdown to the area of \u200b\u200bthe occipital protuberance. Sensitivity of the skin is disturbed, numbness appears, a feeling of crawling "goose bumps", a tremor that makes a person put on a shants collar. The temperature does not rise.
From the side of the heart
Injuries in the neck very often lead to the pathology of the organs of the thoracic region. Angina pectoris and other heart problems can be directly related to osteochondrosis. Sometimes first aid for heart disease does not bring the expected relief. The reason for this is that the nerves involved in the innervation of the chest are formed in the neck, the fibers of the phrenic nerve partially pass to the pericardium. That's why help doesn't make sense.
Damaged nerve fibers send signals to muscles in the chest area, causing heart-like pain. Pain in osteochondrosis has a long duration, reaching hours or days, it is not affected by drugs for angina pectoris. The temperature does not change, and the pain itself is not associated with physical activity, but decreases with a change in body position and disappears when you wear a shants collar. Strengthening occurs during movements and head turns, when coughing or sneezing. What are the symptoms of angina pectoris? Therefore, nitroglycerin preparations cannot relieve pain.
But do not relax, because there are atypical variants of angina that the doctor knows. If there is pain in the heart or thoracic spine, it is better to do another ECG, it is completely safe and painless. If there is osteochondrosis, then at the next attack of pain there may be more numbness than changes on the film.
Damage to the vertebral artery
If there are symptoms of vertebral artery damage, then a Shants collar is needed along with the rest of the treatment. The brain suffers from a lack of oxygen, which leads to headaches and numbness. It manifests as a throbbing headache in the back of the head, temples and crown. In some cases, there is tremor, dizziness, nausea, followed by vomiting.
The temperature is normal, but there are blurred vision, ringing in the ears and hearing loss. Along with the fact that there is a tremor, the coordination of movements and balance are disturbed. Treatment and the Shants collar will help eliminate such symptoms.
In severe cases, fall attacks, a state of unconsciousness with sharp head rotation, develop. Memory suffers, working capacity decreases, concentration of attention is disturbed.
If the above symptoms and tremors appear in the hands, then you need to go to an appointment with a neurologist and undergo an additional examination. You do not need to choose the shants collar yourself, it is also better to do it with the help of a specialist.