Osteochondrosis of the spine is the most common cause of back pain. According to statistics, more than half of all people over the age of 40 experience a similar disease, and its early manifestations appear in the second and third decades of life. At the same time, the disease is almost impossible to cure - it is chronic. The disease itself affects the intervertebral discs and cartilage, which compresses the nerve cells of the spinal cord. Osteochondrosis can be of several types - it all depends on which part of the back is affected. This article will talk about the treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis, which is not such a common disease, but causes great discomfort.
Specificity of the disease
Thoracic osteochondrosis is a rather rare disease, which is due to the structure of the spine. In addition, this disease is quite difficult to diagnose, because its symptoms are often confused with the manifestations of diseases of internal organs.
An exceptional feature of the chest is the fact that it is the least susceptible to stress. A strong connection with the ribs and chest hair creates a mobile, but at the same time durable structure that is the least exposed to various diseases.
With the early stage of the disease, it is practically not felt, which is another characteristic. The disease can cause a sudden increase in breast tension, which is often found in temperamental athletes or in young mothers during breastfeeding. Another common cause of osteochondrosis of the chest is scoliosis or poor posture.
The danger of the disease lies in the fact that the main symptoms appear in the late stage of development, when the nerve cells of the spinal cord or the pillar itself have already suffered severe compression or pathological disorders due to blood failure have occurred. circulation.
Manifestations of thoracic osteochondrosis
Most often, doctors encounter such a disease as radiculopathy - compression of nerve fibers in the spinal cord. In this case, the treatment of thoracic spine osteochondrosis depends on the symptoms that occur. They often occur due to the formation of different degrees of intervertebral hernia, and there are two types:
- Medium hernia. It is characterized by constant pain that does not go away for a long time, and medications and injections rarely allow you to get rid of it.
- Lateral hernia. It is characterized by unilateral pain that occurs at the same level as the hernia, sometimes with loss of sensitivity of varying degrees. With such a manifestation of the disease, medications and injections can cope with the pain.
Compression of the spinal cord itself is very rare. As a rule, such a manifestation of the disease is accompanied by severe low back pain, numbness, weakness in the legs and profuse sweating. Chest pain often spreads to the groin, abdomen and can disrupt the work of internal organs.
Treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis
Competent specialists should think about how to treat thoracic osteochondrosis. Doing this at home is very discouraging. Such treatment usually consists of two phases - elimination of the pain syndrome and elimination of the cause of the pain.
Conservative treatment methods are most often preferred. In cases where this method does not cope with the disease, they resort to surgery, but this is very rare.
Pain relief is achieved through two components - rest and medication. The patient is prescribed bed rest and prescribed nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs alleviate swelling and inflammation, which reduces the compression of nerve fibers in the spinal cord.
Sometimes a combination of medications is used for severe pain. Then, in addition to NSAIDs, painkillers are prescribed - injections, tablets. This is done with very strong and unbearable pain, and medications such as muscle relaxants relieve muscle cramps in the affected area.
Once drug treatment begins to work, a period of remission begins. At the moment, physiotherapy exercises are used with wellness massage and complete rest. This set of measures is an effective treatment.
Treatment at home
In order to significantly reduce the pain that occurs due to such a disease, it is necessary to carry out a long and complex treatment. They often go to the hospital for this purpose, which is not always convenient and permissible. In such cases, you must resort to recovery at home.
It is important to remember that such events can take place only after the initial treatment by a specialist.
Recovery procedures can be used at home and to prevent deterioration, or as a preventative measure. Consider the most effective methods that allow you to get rid of the disease without the use of drugs - injections and tablets. These methods include.
Therapeutic exercises and massage
At home, self-massage is allowed, which consists of warming the back muscles from the neck to the lower back. A folded towel is often used for this purpose - wrapping in a garter, rubbing.
Therapeutic exercises can be performed in a sitting or standing position. Excretion in the back helps a lot, as if stretching after sleep. Another exercise that eliminates aggravation is to alternately raise your arms and move them smoothly behind your back. Do not neglect such a way of treatment as physiotherapy exercises. Health and sports are always interconnected.
Folk remedies
Medicines based on medicinal herbs are actively used at home. They exclude injections and tablets, and consist exclusively of ointments and infusions. The most effective drugs:
Rubbing the back with a 10-day infusion of 200 grams of lilac on 0, 5 liters of vodka helps prevent exacerbation and treats osteochondrosis itself with varying degrees of manifestation.
Crushed hop cones, taken in the same amount with melted lard, will help alleviate the deterioration.
Mix 1, 5 cups of radish juice with a glass of vodka and 200 grams of honey, add 10 g. salt and rub into the affected back area - and you won’t need any injections.
Presented folk remedies are effective methods of treating osteochondrosis with varying degrees of its manifestation. In addition, these products can be used during breastfeeding, because they consist of natural ingredients.
In the treatment of such a disease, with varying degrees of its manifestation, may consist of different methods. Sometimes the greatest effect is given by injections prescribed by a doctor, sometimes folk remedies. Ignoring the advice of experts, and even more completely refusing to review them, is stupid and risky. With a high degree of disease, even injections will not help. In addition, thoracic osteochondrosis is often combined with cervical osteochondrosis, and treatment of cervicothoracic osteochondrosis involves the use of slightly different methods. Therefore, the first thing you need to do when similar pain occurs, consult a specialist.