In just 24-36 sessions, depending on the intensity of treatment and the stages of development of the disease, you will get rid of pain due to osteochondrosis of the chest, be able to normalize sleep and live life to the fullest
It's important to understand
If osteochondrosis of the chest is detected, it is necessary to select an individual set of 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 a full course of treatment in a specialized center, and in the future you need to maintain your health in a preventive mode on your own.
Osteochondrosis is a fairly common and serious disease.
Its danger is that in the initial stages it may not manifest itself in any way or may be disguised as other pathologies.
This happens especially often with osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine.
In this place, the vertebrae are not connected so movably, so degenerative processes rarely develop here.
But if osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine appears, it causes pronounced symptoms and severe pain.
Pathogenesis of osteochondrosis
Recently, osteochondrosis has been diagnosed not only in older people, as it was before. This pathology is becoming increasingly 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 can be many reasons for this, but one of the most common is lack of physical activity and sedentary work.
This is a degenerative-dystrophic pathology, which is characterized by the gradual destruction of intervertebral discs. They lose water and nutrients, the cartilage tissue dries out and begins to crack.
Because of this, the disc ceases to perform shock-absorbing functions, the vertebrae move closer together and also begin to collapse.
In the thoracic region, such processes rarely develop, since the load on the discs here is small. But various injuries, metabolic disorders and blood circulation can lead to the development of thoracic osteochondrosis.
Moreover, it is in this place that the disease is especially severe. After all, there are many nerve endings going to the internal organs here.
Possible complications
The danger of thoracic osteochondrosis is that it begins unnoticed. Often at 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 unsuccessfully treated for gastritis or angina for a long time until they undergo a full examination. An X-ray of the spine will help identify 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 the cartilage tissue of the discs can only be stopped by special methods. The disks themselves cannot recover. In addition, in the thoracic region this process proceeds faster, since due to the low mobility 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;
- disorders of the intestines, liver or pancreas;
- heart diseases.
Typical symptoms and signs of chest osteochondrosis
Every person who is susceptible to spinal diseases should know how osteochondrosis manifests itself. If you do not ignore typical symptoms, you can start treatment on time and stop the progression of the pathology.
The main sign of damage to the spine is that the pain is associated with physical activity. At the initial stages they are not strong and appear in the evening, and after rest they go away.
In addition, the pain intensifies with a deep breath, raising your arms up, turning your torso, or lifting heavy objects. And it usually begins in one place, only then spreading to the entire 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 at the initial stage. 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 typical symptoms. Some patients do not feel back pain or intercostal neuralgia.
Sometimes thoracic osteochondrosis manifests itself with atypical symptoms characteristic of other diseases. Most often it is confused with pathologies of internal organs.
- Basically, its manifestations are similar to angina pectoris. Pain in the heart that intensifies when inhaling, shortness of breath, and the inability to raise an arm force patients to take heart medications. But there is no relief, and the ECG also does not reveal any disturbances in the functioning of the heart.
- Sometimes pain occurs that resembles the symptoms of a peptic ulcer, gastritis or pancreatitis. But they worsen not after eating, as in these pathologies, but after physical activity.
- Women may notice pain in the mammary glands.
- Localization of the pathology 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 even suffocation.
Often there is numbness or tingling in the upper extremities, muscle weakness, and the inability to raise 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 its possible causes. People with a hereditary predisposition, excess weight, and bad habits are susceptible 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 45 years of age. It is at this time that metabolic processes slow down, tissues lack nutrients.
In addition, physical activity decreases, which leads to a weakening of the muscular corset of the spine.
But there are other causes of osteochondrosis in the thoracic region:
- back injuries, bruises or sprains;
- regular lifting of weights, heavy physical activity;
- rachiocampsis;
- prolonged sitting in an incorrect position, for example, when working at a computer or driving a car.
What are the degrees of the disease?
Osteochondrosis of the chest is a chronic pathology. It develops very slowly, but is constantly progressing.
To choose the right treatment methods, doctors distinguish several stages of the disease. They have characteristic symptoms and require a special approach to therapy.
- The first degree of osteochondrosis causes almost no pain. If they occur, it occurs after physical activity.
- In the second stage, the pain becomes more severe. 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 dysfunction of internal organs appear.
- At the third stage of osteochondrosis, an intervertebral hernia often appears. A ruptured disc puts pressure on blood vessels and nerves, leading to severe pain and other health problems. The mobility of the spine in this place is greatly limited.
- The last stage of the pathology is characterized by complete destruction of the disc. Osteophytes appear on the vertebrae, sometimes they completely fuse together. Every movement of the patient causes him pain, so the disease at this stage often leads to disability.
Why should you consult a doctor immediately?
Some patients ignore the first symptoms of the disease. They mistake mild back pain and muscle weakness for overwork. And after rest they continue to lead their usual lifestyle. Because of this, the disease progresses, leading to serious complications.
A decrease in the shock-absorbing functions of the intervertebral discs leads to curvature of the spine. Thoracic kyphosis usually develops. Because of it, the chest is compressed and breathing is impaired.
If you do not see a doctor in time, the intervertebral discs can completely collapse. This will lead to the convergence of the vertebrae and pinching of the nerve endings. With each movement, the situation will be aggravated by 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 prevent serious complications of the pathology, you need to consult a doctor in time. The earlier treatment is started, the greater the opportunity to completely stop degenerative processes.
This is best done with the help of kinesiotherapy. At the initial stage of pathology, as well as during its prevention, this method will help strengthen the muscular corset of the spine and improve blood supply to the disc tissue.
Specialists at a modern kinesiotherapy center will help prevent the development of degenerative processes in people with a predisposition to them. After all, moderate physical activity is necessary to maintain a healthy spine.
An individually designed daily regimen with special exercises and diet will help avoid disc destruction and complications of this process.
How is the treatment carried out?
Anamnesis collection - analysis of the disease, limitations and contraindications are identified, explanation of the principles of kinesitherapy, features of the recovery period.
Myofascial diagnostics is a manual diagnostic method in which the doctor assesses the range of joint movements, determines painful tightness, swelling, hypo- or hypertonicity of muscles and other changes.
Functional diagnostics (carried out in the rehabilitation room) - the doctor explains how to perform certain exercises on the equipment and observes: how the patient performs them, what range of motion he can work with, what movements cause pain, what weight the patient can work with, how the cardiovascular system reacts. vascular system. Problem areas are identified. The data is entered into the card. Accents are set.
Based on the results of the initial examination by a doctor and functional diagnostics, a preliminary individual treatment program is drawn up.
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-rays;
- in the presence of concomitant diseases - extracts from the medical history or outpatient card;
- comfortable (sports) clothes and shoes
Lessons with an instructor
At the beginning of the treatment cycle, the doctor and the patient draw up a treatment plan, which includes 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 treatment sessions in the rehabilitation room using simulators and sessions in the gym.
Rehabilitation simulators allow you to accurately dose the load on individual muscle groups, providing an adequate regime of physical activity. The treatment program is compiled by the doctor individually for each patient, taking into account the characteristics of the body. Supervision is carried out by qualified instructors. At all stages of recovery, it is important to follow the correct movement and breathing technique, know your 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 elasticity (flexibility) of the spine 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 draws up a program, taking into account concomitant diseases and the patient’s condition on the day of class. Teaches the technique of performing exercises and monitors the 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 is prepared for physical activity (do you do gymnastics or any sport).
- what result do you want to get.
If the disease is in its early stages and the body is prepared, one treatment cycle is sufficient. (example - young people 20-30 years old who go in for sports. We focus their attention on the technique of performing exercises, breathing, stretching, excluding "wrong" exercises that are harmful to problem areas. Such patients undergo training and receive the skill of "caring for your body", receive recommendations in case of exacerbation and continue to study on their own).