In just 24-36 sessions, depending on the intensity of the treatment and the stage of disease development, you will get rid of the pain caused by chest osteochondrosis, be able to sleep normally and live life to the fullest.
It is important to understand
If chest osteochondrosis is detected, it is necessary to choose a set of individual therapeutic exercises, study the technique of their implementation and exclude exercises that have contraindications.
With this diagnosis, it is important to regularly attend treatment sessions, undergo full treatment at a specialized center, and in the future you need to maintain your health in self-prevention mode.
Osteochondrosis is a relatively common and serious disease.
The danger is that in the early stages it may not manifest in any way or may disguise itself as another pathology.
This happens especially with osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine.
In this place, the vertebrae do not connect so move, so the degenerative process rarely develops here.
But if osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine appears, it causes obvious symptoms and severe pain.
Pathogenesis of osteochondrosis
Recently, osteochondrosis has been diagnosed not only in older people, as before. This pathology is becoming more and more common among young people.
This is due to the characteristics of lifestyle and nutrition. After all, osteochondrosis occurs due to disruption of metabolic processes and blood circulation.
There are many reasons for this, but one of the most common is lack of physical activity and sedentary work.
This is a degenerative-dystrophic pathology, characterized by the gradual destruction of the intervertebral disc. They lose water and nutrients, the cartilage tissue dries up and begins to crack.
Because of this, the disc stops performing its shock-absorbing function, the vertebrae move closer together and even begin to collapse.
In the thoracic region, such a process rarely develops, since the load on the disc here is small. But various injuries, metabolic and circulatory disorders can lead to the development of thoracic osteochondrosis.
Moreover, in this place the disease is very bad. After all, there are many nerve endings that go to internal organs here.
Possible complications
The danger of thoracic osteochondrosis is that it starts unnoticed. Often in the first stage there are almost no painful sensations, and those that arise can be confused with pain in the stomach or heart.
Therefore, many patients are not successfully treated for gastritis or angina for a long time until they undergo a full examination. X-ray of the spine will help identify the narrowing of the intervertebral space and suspect the development of osteochondrosis.
If this is not done and treatment is not started, the disease will progress rapidly. The destruction of disc cartilage tissue can only be stopped by special methods. The disk itself cannot be recovered. In addition, in the thoracic region this process goes faster, because due to the low movement of the spine, the blood supply to the tissues is worse here.
Therefore, without timely treatment, osteochondrosis can lead to serious complications. It can cause the following pathologies:
- protrusion or intervertebral hernia;
- spinal cord compression;
- intercostal neuralgia;
- biliary dyskinesia;
- intestinal, liver or pancreatic disorders;
- heart disease.
Common symptoms and signs of osteochondrosis of the chest
Everyone who is prone to diseases of the spine should know how osteochondrosis manifests itself. If you do not ignore typical symptoms, you can start treatment in time and stop the development of pathology.
The main symptom of damage to the spine is pain associated with physical activity. At the initial stage they are not strong and appear in the evening, and after resting they disappear.
In addition, the pain increases with deep breathing, lifting your arms up, twisting your body, or lifting heavy objects. And it usually starts in one place, only then spreads to the whole chest.
Due to painful sensations, muscle spasms occur in this place, and it becomes difficult for the patient to move. Often the pathology is accompanied by intercostal neuralgia.
What can be confused with osteochondrosis of the chest?
This disease can be cured only in the early stages. But the problem is that it is difficult to diagnose osteochondrosis of the chest in time, its symptoms are often confused with other pathologies.
It is not always accompanied by normal symptoms. Some patients do not feel back pain or intercostal neuralgia.
Sometimes thoracic osteochondrosis manifests itself with atypical symptoms characteristic of other diseases. Often it is confused with pathology of internal organs.
- Basically, its manifestations are similar to angina pectoris. Pain in the heart that increases when breathing, shortness of breath, and the inability to increase the strength of the patient's arm to take heart medication. But there was no relief, and the ECG also did not reveal any disturbances in the heart's function.
- Sometimes pain occurs that resembles the symptoms of peptic ulcer, gastritis or pancreatitis. But they worsen not after eating, as in this pathology, but after physical activity.
- Women may notice pain in the mammary glands.
- Pathological localization in the upper part of the thoracic region can cause a lump in the throat and difficulty swallowing.
Osteochondrosis of the chest can cause nausea, difficulty breathing, or shortness of breath.
There is often numbness or tingling in the upper extremities, muscle weakness, and an inability to lift the arm or move it to the side.
Causes of osteochondrosis of the chest
Often, to accurately diagnose a disease, it is necessary to take into account the possible causes. People with hereditary predisposition, overweight, and bad habits are prone to such pathologies.
It is also recommended to examine the spine in patients with various endocrine and metabolic disorders, diseases of the circulatory system, and diabetes mellitus.
Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine most often occurs in people over the age of 45. It is at this time that the metabolic process slows down, tissues lack nutrients.
In addition, physical activity decreases, which leads to the weakening of the spinal muscular corset.
But there are other causes of osteochondrosis in the thoracic region:
- back injuries, bruises or sprains;
- lifting weights on a regular basis, heavy physical activity;
- rachiocampsis;
- sitting for a long time in an incorrect position, for example, while working at the computer or driving a car.
What is the stage of the disease?
Chest osteochondrosis is a chronic pathology. It grows very slowly, but always grows.
To choose the right treatment method, doctors distinguish several stages of the disease. They have characteristic symptoms and require a special approach to therapy.
- The first stage of osteochondrosis causes almost no pain. If it happens, it happens after physical activity.
- In the second stage, the pain becomes worse. Indeed, due to the gradual destruction of the disc, the vertebrae move closer to each other, which can cause pinching of the nerve roots. In this case, neurological symptoms and signs of internal organ dysfunction appear.
- In the third stage of osteochondrosis, intervertebral hernia often appears. A ruptured disc puts pressure on blood vessels and nerves, causing severe pain and other health problems. Mobility of the spine in this place is very limited.
- The last stage of pathology is characterized by complete destruction of the disc. Osteophytes appear on the vertebrae, sometimes they are completely united. Every movement of the patient causes him pain, so the disease at this stage often leads to disability.
Why do you need to see a doctor right away?
Some patients ignore the first symptoms of the disease. They attribute mild back pain and muscle weakness to overwork. And after resting they continue to live their normal lifestyle. Because of this, the disease develops, leading to serious complications.
A reduction in the shock-absorbing function of the intervertebral disc leads to curvature of the spine. Thoracic kyphosis usually develops. Because of that, the chest is compressed and breathing is disturbed.
If you do not see a doctor in time, the intervertebral disc can completely collapse. This will lead to convergence of the vertebrae and pinching the nerve endings. With each movement, the situation will worsen due to the fact that the vertebrae will begin to collapse due to friction. This can cause damage to the spinal cord and paralysis of the body below the damaged vertebrae.
Disease prevention
To avoid serious complications of pathology, you need to consult a doctor in time. The earlier treatment is started, the greater the chance of completely stopping the degenerative process.
This is best done with the help of kinesiotherapy. In the early stages of pathology, as well as during its prevention, this method will help strengthen the corset of the spinal muscles and increase the blood supply to the disc tissue.
Specialists in modern kinesiotherapy centers will help prevent the development of degenerative processes in people who have a tendency to them. After all, moderate physical activity is necessary to maintain a healthy spine.
An individually designed daily regimen with exercise and a special diet will help prevent disc destruction and complications of this process.
How is the treatment carried out?
Collection of anamnesis - analysis of the disease, limitations and contraindications are identified, explanation of the principles of kinesitherapy, characteristics of the recovery period.
Myofascial diagnostics is a manual diagnostic method in which the doctor assesses the range of motion of the joints, determines painful tightness, swelling, hypo- or hypertonicity of the muscles and other changes.
Functional diagnostics (carried out in the recovery room) - the doctor explains how to perform certain exercises on the equipment and observes: how the patient performs them, the range of movements he can perform, what movements cause pain, how much weight the patient can work with, how the cardiovascular system reacts. vascular system. Problem areas are identified. Data is entered into the card. Accents are set.
Based on the results of the initial examination by the doctor and functional diagnostics, an initial individual treatment program is prepared.
It is advisable to have with you:
- for pain in the spine - MRI or CT (magnetic resonance or computed tomography) of the problem area;
- for joint pain - x-ray;
- in the presence of concomitant diseases - extract from the medical history or outpatient card;
- comfortable clothes and shoes (sports).
Lessons with an instructor
At the beginning of the treatment cycle, the doctor and the patient draw up a treatment plan, including the date and time of the treatment session, follow-up visits to the doctor (usually 2-3 times a week).
The basis of the treatment process is a treatment session in the recovery room using a simulator and a session in the gym.
The recovery simulator allows you to precisely dose the load on individual muscle groups, providing an adequate physical activity regime. The treatment program is prepared by the doctor individually for each patient, taking into account the characteristics of the body. Supervision is conducted by qualified instructors. At all stages of recovery, it is important to follow the correct movements and breathing techniques, know your body weight standards when working on exercise machines, adhere to the prescribed treatment regimen and follow the recommendations of specialists.
Joint gymnastics sessions help restore visual coordination, improve joint mobility and spine elasticity (flexibility) and are an excellent preventive system for self-use.
Each treatment cycle consists of 12 sessions. Each lesson is supervised by an instructor. The duration of one treatment session is from 40 minutes to 1. 5 hours. The instructor designs the program, taking into account co-morbidities and the patient's condition on the day of the class. Teach the technique of performing exercises and monitor correct execution. Every 6th lesson, a second consultation with the doctor is held, changes and additions are made to the program, depending on the dynamics.
How many cycles will it take? - individually for everyone
It is important to know:
- How long have you had this problem (stage of disease)
- How your body prepares for physical activity (do you do gymnastics or any sport).
- what results do you want to get?
If the disease is at an early stage and the body is ready, one cycle of treatment is enough. (example - young people aged 20-30 who do sports. We focus their attention on the technique of doing exercises, breathing, stretching, excluding "wrong" exercises that are harmful to problem areas. Such patients undergo training and receive training in the skills of "taking care of your body", accept suggestions in case of aggravation and continue learning on your own).