What is osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine? How is lumbar osteochondrosis treated? And is it true that osteochondrosis is not treated at all?
Considering the incidence statistics, the number of cases does not decrease every year. Intervertebral osteochondrosis affects both a young organism and older people. How to treat lumbar spine osteochondrosis, and the main symptoms of lumbar osteochondrosis, will be described in detail by a neuropathologist or osteopath.
Osteochondrosis is a fairly common disease. Damage refers to a change in the shape of the vertebrae and a decrease in the elasticity of the intervertebral discs, due to malnutrition of the cells.The lumbar spine is suffering for a reason. Being at the bottom of the spine, the vertebrae receive the maximum load. During weight lifting, all the force acting on the body is filled with emptying of the intervertebral space and this leads to the compression of the nerve roots. From here, signs of lumbar osteochondrosis begin to appear.
Reasons
Every disease has predisposing factors that act negatively on the body. Osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine also has its causes. Doctors do not rule out the cause, the transmission of the disease at the genetic level. It is believed that if parents have problems with malnutrition of the intervertebral discs, then there is a high probability that this problem will not bypass the children. One of the most common reasons is hard physical work. When you lift weights, most of the load goes to the lumbosacral spine.
Overweight is an equally common cause of the disease. Excess weight that accumulates in the body puts pressure on the spine and causes pain. It seems that bad behavior will not lead to anything serious, but this is also one of the reasons for wearing intervertebral discs, which turns into osteochondrosis. Back injuries are significant. Contusions, or the lifting of heavy objects by a poorly trained athlete, or an incorrectly compared load are also adversely affected.
The most common cause of poor nutrition in disc cells is a sedentary lifestyle.
To maintain a healthy body, a person needs a moderate load. Limited or completely absent physical activity leads to a decrease in the speed of blood circulation. As a result, the back muscles, without getting the necessary nutrients, weaken and the load on the lumbar spine increases. Also, over the years, the spine does not become as mobile as in youth, the elasticity of the intervertebral discs decreases, which leads to disease.
Infectious diseases, or inflammations affecting the bones or joints, lead to changes in the structure of the vertebrae. Congenital skeletal malformations, or deviations in the development of the musculoskeletal system. Flat feet, leading to destruction of the back segments, due to lack of absorption of shocks to the limbs. Most of the load does not fall on the foot, but on the lower back, which leads to deformation of the segments. A common cause of various diseases are stressful situations. Therefore, lumbar osteochondrosis and its symptoms are no exception. A strong nerve blow can serve as a trigger for pinchings of nerve endings, and trigger a pain attack. Most often, stress is the cause of osteochondrosis in women, they are more prone to emotions than men.
Symptoms
The initial stage of the disease, doctors rarely diagnose. Therefore, it is difficult to identify the main symptoms of lumbar spine osteochondrosis. The manifestation of the disease occurs gradually.
Since the main manifestation is low back pain, there is a division of pain into 3 groups, which in turn characterize the symptoms and signs of low back pain.
- Lumbago- paroxysmal pain that occurs in response to a sudden movement or weight lifting. When you try to take another position, the pain becomes even stronger, up to the lumbago.
- Lumbodynia- the pain increases and becomes regular. Muscle fibers and intervertebral cartilage are affected. Lumbodinia is a consequence of lumbago.
- Lumboishalgia- painful, cold or hot sensation in the lumbar region and lower extremities. They arise in response to pinchings of spinal cord roots.
The second most important symptom in diagnosing a disease is the limitation of physical activity due to painful sensations. When trying to do a job or practice habit for himself, a person experiences increased pain, which can affect the entire leg. Even in a sitting position, the patient experiences a tingling sensation from the lower back to the foot.
Equally important is a local drop in temperature and skin discoloration, it becomes dry and pale. Numbness, weakness in the muscles of the lower extremities, indicates the progression of the disease. The most severe phenomenon, manifested in the last degree of osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine, is a dysfunction of the pelvic organs. Persistent debilitating pain is associated with fecal and urinary incontinence, or conversely, a delay in secretion.
When you diagnose diseases, there are four stages of lumbosacral spine osteochondrosis. For each stage, the symptoms of lumbar spine osteochondrosis are characteristic, to which is added the pain in the sacrum.
As the disease progresses, osteochondrosis may descend to the last spine, the hind tail. The disease is called osteochondrosis of the sacral spine. There is sharp, paroxysmal pain in the coccyx. Women suffer the most in this case. Their anatomical structure of the body and age-related changes in it, contribute to the development of intervertebral osteochondrosis. Osteochondrosis in women is often complicated by other internal diseases.
The symptoms of lumbosacral osteochondrosis have some difference from lumbar osteochondrosis.
Symptoms appear in the dysfunction of the pelvic organs, which complicates the choice of correct treatment and diagnosis of the cause of the disease.
Signs such as frequent urination, urinary and fecal incontinence appear. If the diagnosis is not correct, complications arise.Stages of the disease
Treatment of lumbar osteochondrosis also varies depending on the stage of the disease.
- The first, and is the initial stage of the disease, is characterized by the appearance of pain in the lower back - lumbago, muscle spasms, local swelling of the skin.
- The second stage, begins with lumbodynia. The pain becomes regular and more intense than in the initial stage. In the joints of the spine, an uncharacteristic movement may appear, which increases the pain. The pain is felt along the sciatic nerve. Rarely, the functions of internal organs may be impaired.
- The third stageis characterized by the appearance of intervertebral hernias. The spine is deformed, the curvature can be left or right, this is scoliosis, front - lordosis, back - kyphosis. Because of this, a person is tortured by constant sharp pain.
- The fourth stage, the most difficult. Due to the constant strong pain, the patient's movement is difficult. Without starting treatment on time, a person can be permanently disabled.
Complications
The most common complication is a malfunction of the genitourinary system. Along with incontinence, urine and feces, inflammation occurs in the genitals of the urine and in the rectum. With a more pronounced damage to the vertebrae, irritation occurs in the direction of the sciatic nerve and its inflammation. Protrusion of the intervertebral disc is a very dangerous complication. Exit is a borderline condition of the intervertebral disc, which can lead to another complication if treatment is not started on time. Occurs due to a transient degenerative change in the spine.
The consequence of extension is a herniated disc. Which is manifested by a change in its shape, and a rupture of the membrane of the intervertebral disc.
Continuous compression of the spinal cord nerve roots and inflammation leads to a complication such as sciatica.
Complete blockage of the spinal canal may occur. Due to instability in the lumbosacral region, men develop congestion in the small pelvis, which leads to impotence. In women, this leads to inflammatory diseases of the uterus, ovaries and appendages. On the kidney side, this is adrenal colic, which cannot be eliminated until osteochondrosis of the lower back is treated. Paralysis of the lower limbs, which can confine a person to a wheelchair. Early diagnosis and timely treatment of osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine helps prevent these complications and avoid disability.
Treatment
Let's look at lumbar osteochondrosis, symptoms and treatment. In modern times, medicine is able to achieve the cure of a person suffering from osteochondrosis. Treatment of lumbosacral spine osteochondrosis takes a long time. A sick person who has intervertebral osteochondrosis for the first time will still ask if osteochondrosis can be cured and how to get rid of it permanently?
What do I do? Is lower spine osteochondrosis treated? First you need to completely rethink your lifestyle. Draw certain conclusions. You need to move towards the precious goal of healing every day without interruption. With osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine, the complex treatment of the disease is of great importance. Treatment of lumbosacral osteochondrosis involves several methods.
Conservatives
Conservative treatment, based on massage techniques, which, if done correctly, can relieve muscle spasm and improve muscle fiber nutrition. By improving trophism, the back muscle corset is strengthened. The posture takes the right position, which determines the appearance of various back problems. Physical therapy for lumbar osteochondrosis is very helpful, but you should exercise during the remission period, between exacerbations. Being engaged in the acute period of the disease can worsen the situation and damage your health.
Manual therapy also refers to conservative treatment. It should be performed by a professional specially trained in this technique. Thanks to this therapy, the spine can be returned to the desired position. This is sometimes the most effective method. It is necessary to carry out such a procedure in the subacute period.
Eating diets, obese people, leading a healthy lifestyle and sticking to a healthy diet will not hurt anyone. And people with such a disease will only benefit. Since overweight, this is one of the reasons for the occurrence of osteochondrosis. Physical therapy is an equally effective treatment. Magnetotherapy, UHF are capable of long-term treatment, improve blood circulation to the area affected by lumbar osteochondrosis. They also have a vasodilating and analgesic effect.
Type of treatment treatment. How to treat lumbar spine osteochondrosis with medication? What treatment should it be, all these questions are of great interest to a sick person. Treatment is divided into two types. In the first case, during the acute period of intervertebral osteochondrosis, medications aim to eliminate pain and inflammation. Means are used that liberate the embedded roots of the spinal nerves. These include muscle relaxants, glucocorticosteroids, blockade, NSAIDs. For the second period, between exacerbations, medications are used to improve blood circulation, to restore muscle and nerve fibers, damaged body tissues. For this purpose, vitamins and preparations of plant and animal origin are used.
To improve blood circulation, vascular preparations are used, as well as warming and anesthetic oils.
Operative
Neurosurgeons perform microsurgical and endoscopic operations on the spine.
These methods are more common and are removed when other treatments fail.
When the effect of drug therapy is not achieved, and complications such as a hernia appear, surgery to remove the affected disc is indicated.
Disease Prevention
Prevention of osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine consists in eliminating the risk factors leading to this disease. In order not to think about how to cure lumbar osteochondrosis, you need to prevent its occurrence. Eliminating the causes is the main preventive measure.
Normalized physical activity, strengthening of the back muscles, prevention of maximum load on the lumbar spine, prevention of the development of diseases leading to osteochondrosis, all these are preventive measures to prevent the symptoms of lumbosacral osteochondrosis. By adhering to these simple principles, you maintain your health and prolong your life. After all, without observing treatment and prevention, you can never return to a full life.