Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is asymptomatic as long as the intervertebral discs cope with their amortization duties. As soon as their thickness begins to decrease, instability occurs. The body compensates for this by the growth of osteophytes, as a result, a person feels stiffness in the neck, and over time, other unpleasant symptoms appear, which significantly worsen the quality of life. Treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine should be comprehensive.
This means that drug therapy alone (injections, tablets, ointments) is not enough. In addition to her, it is imperative to do special therapeutic exercises, massage, take hirudotherapy courses (leech therapy), and also do elementary exercises at home. As an addition to the main treatment, the use of folk remedies is allowed.
Medicines
The doctor's priority is to relieve the patient from pain. For these purposes, a whole complex of drugs is used:
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory;
- anesthetics and hormonal (for blockages);
- muscle relaxants;
- chondroprotectors;
- sedatives and antidepressants;
- B vitamins.
The listed groups of drugs in the complex play the role of a powerful analgesic complex for osteochondrosis, and also nourish the intervertebral discs and restore the work of the nerves:
- NSAIDs relieve mild to severe inflammation and pain.
- Anesthetics and hormonal agents are injected into the place of pain (paravertebral or vagosympathetic) - the pain syndrome stops instantly. The patient is then put on a neck brace for a while so that he cannot move his head sharply.
- Muscle relaxants are used to relax spasmodic muscles.
- Chondroprotectors improve the nutrition of the intervertebral discs. Their reception begins at the same time as NSAIDs. Usually the use of chondroprotectors is long-term and complex. This means that the doctor can prescribe, along with external agents, oral medications, as well as injections.
- Sedatives and antidepressants help the patient cope with stress, prevent depression, which in turn helps to cope with muscle tension.
- Complex preparations of B vitamins. Lack of B1, 6 and 12 negatively affects nerve fibers and neuronal conduction. First, drugs are prescribed in the form of injections in a short course, then they switch to supportive therapy and take pills.
On a note. Most NSAIDs and chondroprotectors are presented in various forms - in tablets, ointments, injections, as well as rectal suppositories (NSAIDs) and patches (NSAIDs).
Therapeutic gymnastics and massage
As soon as the pain syndrome subsides, it is necessary to gradually increase the motor activity of the cervical spine. If the patient had a blockade, then the bandage is removed after about a week.
Some doctors believe that it is always necessary to move. When the patient is prescribed bed rest, it is believed that this helps to cope with the disease, but in fact the person gets the opposite effect - on one side of the neck, spasmodic muscles, if muscle relaxants were not used, remain constrained, on the other hand, on the other hand, their slow weakening is observed (sagging orloss of tone). As a result, returning to a working rhythm, a patient with cervical osteochondrosis in a fairly short time will inevitably again face pain, limited mobility and muscle spasms. If you engage in physical education in small doses, but constantly, you can achieve pain relief with minimal use of painkillers.
The same point of view is shared by physical therapy doctors and chiropractors. Their techniques are based on movement, and not lying in bed, as 90% of doctors who are trying to relieve a patient with cervical osteochondrosis from pain are advocating.
Exercises for acute pain
This is static gymnastics, in which the cervical spine does not perform any movements. The physical therapy doctor recommends performing the following 3 exercises for headaches, tinnitus, pain in the neck:
- Sit on a chair, straighten your back, look straight. Place your hands on top of one another and place them under your chin. Start pressing your chin on your hands, as if you want to lower your head. At this moment, the spine is not involved in any way, but the muscles of the front of the neck are tense. Press on your hands for 3 to 5 seconds, then lower your arms and relax. Repeat several times.
- Continue to sit with your back straight and look forward. Place the back of your right hand on your cheek. Begin to turn your head to the right, while resisting with your hand. The head is motionless. Press for 3 to 5 seconds, then remove your hand and relax. Repeat several times. Repeat exercise # 2 with the other hand.
- Place the brushes one on top of the other at the back of your head. Imagine throwing your head back. Resist with your hands. At the moment of pressure, linger for 3 to 5 seconds. Then lower your arms and relax. Repeat several times.
You do not need to put pressure on your hands with all your might. This will backfire - the pain will intensify. All movements are as smooth as possible, slow, without jerks. The number of approaches per day is from 2-3 times.
On a note. Static exercises are akin to micromotion techniques. As a result, the muscles relax, the pain gradually disappears.
A universal set of exercises for cervical osteochondrosis
Gymnastics can be performed independently, at home, both during remission and at the time of exacerbation.
The universal complex consists of 6 exercises:
- Stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart, expand your chest. Place your hands on your shoulders. Perform symmetrical circular movements backward (at least 10 times), then forward (10 times). The body and neck are motionless. After finishing the exercise, lower your arms down and shake from your shoulders, relax.
- Continue to stand. Spread your arms to the sides parallel to the floor, clench your hands into fists. Now imagine swinging dumbbells. At the same time, bend your elbows and touch your shoulders with your fists, then straighten. Repeat 10-15 times. After finishing the exercise, shake your hands off your shoulders and relax.
- Stay in the starting position. The exercise is static. Interlace your fingers and place your palms on your forehead. Begin, as it were, to lower your head forward. Resist with your hands. Hold in the pressure position for 3-5 seconds, then relax. The muscles of the back of the neck work.
- Do exercise number 3 from the complex with an exacerbation of cervical osteochondrosis.
- From the starting position, without moving your neck, bring your shoulders forward, hold for 3-5 seconds, then straighten and bring your shoulder blades together and relax. Repeat several times.
- From the starting position: take a deep breath with your nose - raise your arms to the sides and up, lower in front of you - exhale completely through your mouth. In an acute period, raise your arms low - parallel to the floor.
On a note. For a complete cure of the cervicalosteochondrosisthese exercises are not enough. However, they are suitable for relieving acute pain and restoring mobility of the spine.
Micromovements
A chiropractor has developed a system for helping patients with cervical osteochondrosis:
- Sit on a chair and lean on the back. Now imagine that you agree with someone - shake your head slightly. You can do this as long as you like, until you get bored. As soon as a free minute is given, they sat down and did it. Free refills.
- The starting position is exactly the same as in exercise 1. Only now do not agree with the interlocutor - shake your head left and right barely noticeably. Do as long as convenient. Free refills.
On a note. Sets of exercises can be combined with each other. This will give a noticeable effect in a short time - the pain will subside.
Massage
It is better to entrust the massage of the cervical spine to a specialist. However, in case of severe pain, if it is possible to painlessly raise and put your hands behind your head, you can try to help yourself on your own. There are many self-massage techniques.
The simplest self-massage is done as follows:
- Sit in a chair. Raise and place the hand behind your head on the opposite side of the pain.
- Start stroking your neck in the area of inflammation. Do it gently at first, with almost no pressure. Then increase the intensity slightly.
- Go down to the shoulder. As a rule, when torticollis overtakes, not only the neck on one side hurts, but also the shoulder. Stretch your shoulder. This must be done actively so that the spasmodic muscles warm up, but there should not be severe pain from self-massage.
- Repeat all the same, but on the other side of the neck. This must be done, because on the one hand the muscles are spasmodic, on the other they are relaxed - you need to even out their tone.
- Place both hands behind your head and place your fingers along the spine (along the spinous processes). Carefully, but actively enough, work through this area. Do not apply excessive pressure. The neck is the most delicate part of the spine. One awkward move can hurt yourself and make the situation worse.
- Apply any anesthetic gel or ointment that you have in your medicine cabinet on the warmed cervical spine.
Do not use warming ointments for self-massage. The skin on the neck is very delicate, especially in the area of the arteries and in the front. If the heating compound gets there, you can get burned.
Hirudotherapy
Treatment with leeches for osteochondrosis, especially of the cervical spine, is very effective. Hirudotherapy helps:
- reduce pain;
- improve blood circulation in the area of influence of leeches - the flow of arterial blood to the brain and the outflow of venous blood are normalized;
- relieve swelling;
- enhance the effect of drugs;
- improve sleep;
- relieve psychological stress;
- significantly reduce headaches and dizziness.
Not everyone is allowed such treatment. Do not forget to undergo a full examination before leech treatment. If there are no contraindications, 7-10 procedures are performed. To consolidate the result in a month, you can again turn to a hirudotherapist.
Folk remedies
Try the following recipes:
- rub the back of the neck with a sheet of Indian onion, cover it with something warm on top and go to bed;
- self-massage with honey - rub the neck and shoulder girdle with honey, then apply a towel soaked in warm water, after 10 minutes remove the remaining honey (if any) and go to bed, covered with a blanket;
- take a steam bath, but not during exacerbations, then do a honey massage and drink herbal tea;
- use a needle applicator - place the plate with needles in the area of the seventh cervical vertebra, if the sensations are tolerable, then sleep on the needles - in the morning you will notice significant relief.
There are many ways to treat cervical osteochondrosis. In addition to those described, an effective method of therapy is acupuncture, yoga, Pilates, exercises on fitball. Remember, self-medication is dangerous. Make an appointment with your doctor and have a complete check-up. The specialist will individually select the treatment and tell you which exercises can be done and which are not allowed, whether self-massage is possible, whether leeches will help, or maybe recommend one of the methods of alternative medicine, for example, bee stinging.