Chest osteochondrosis: symptoms, causes and treatment

Osteochondrosis is one of the most diagnosed pathologies of the spine. It has a degenerative-dystrophic nature of pathological origin, affects the intervertebral discs, which leads to their structural and external changes. Doctors prescribe three types of disease: cervical, thoracic and lumbar osteochondrosis, depending on the location of the disorder in the spine. If we talk about the statistics of identified pathologies, it is believed that thoracic osteochondrosis is less common than other types. This is due to the peculiarities of the structure of the human spine in the thoracic region: the intervertebral discs of this part of the back have limited mobility, which significantly reduces the likelihood of their traumatic injury.

What is thoracic osteochondrosis

The disease is difficult to diagnose, because its symptoms are often similar to pathological changes in other organs: heart, stomach, etc. Thoracic osteochondrosis is dangerous in its consequences, so its early detection gives more chances for timely correction and prevention of undesirable consequences. The disease is equally often diagnosed in patients of both sexes, including children of different ages. Let's talk in more detail about the causes, symptoms, medications and home remedies for osteochondrosis of the chest.

Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine manifests itself as a degenerative-dystrophic disorder in the structure of bone and cartilage tissue, which leads to the development of destructive processes in them. Along with the vertebrae themselves, the intervertebral discs also suffer: they stratify, shrink in size, and therefore the nerve endings in the intercostal space are compressed. All this together affects the normal functioning of the spine. Treatment started at the wrong time aggravates the condition, then it is solved only with the help of surgery, which for various reasons can not always be solved by the patient.

Osteochondrosis of the chest can lead to the development of very serious and dangerous diseases and conditions. Often pneumosclerosis, narrowed blood vessels, dysfunctions of the genitourinary system, cancer pathologies, etc. is the reason. When osteochondrosis progresses rapidly, it usually limits a person's physical ability: it is difficult for him to walk, work, and exercise freely. ordinary activities.

With the development of osteochondrosis in patients, first the bone component of the vertebrae, then the cartilage and finally the connective tissue and adjacent muscles are affected.

If signs of osteochondrosis appear in childhood or adolescence, it is a dangerous situation, because it indicates that the human musculoskeletal system begins to age without full formation and development. Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is rarely diagnosed in a child. However, the detected disease often indicates the presence of another dangerous disease.

The pathology is approximately equally common in both men and women. There are no special priorities for age. However, it should be noted that women are more prone to the disease during hormonal changes in the body - during menopause.

If you start treating osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine in the early stages, the chances of a positive outcome of therapy are higher.

The degree of the disease and the characteristic symptoms

The development of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine occurs gradually, with several different stages. For the proper organization of the treatment process, it is necessary to understand the mechanisms of its development and progress.

• The initial stage of degenerative-dystrophic processes in the spine is characterized by a slight decrease in the size of the intervertebral discs. Small cracks begin to appear on the surfaces of the annulus fibrosis of the intervertebral discs. The disc may be slightly outside the vertebral column. At the same time, first-degree thoracic osteochondrosis does not manifest itself in painful sensations, often a person is unaware of the dangerous disease at the beginning. With the help of computed tomography, the protrusion of the discs (their slight loss) is detected.
• If a person has grade 2 thoracic osteochondrosis, painful manifestations begin to appear in the back of the chest area. This is explained by the compression of nerve fibers. The musculoskeletal system of the back, ie. The muscle corset provides optimal support of the spine in the correct anatomical shape. It is extremely important to shape the muscular structures of the back symmetrically to prevent instability of the spine. Otherwise, there is not only a violation of posture, curvature of the spine, but also excessive mobility of its individual elements. As the mobility of the vertebrae increases, the nerve fibers coming out of the spine are squeezed out of the intervertebral space. How does osteochondrosis manifest itself in the second stage? In the second stage of thoracic osteochondrosis, back pain is definitely visible. It has different features: it can be taken in the form of long-term or short-term, seizures. The situation is aggravated by the fact that the nerve endings are directly compressed in the muscles, which are constantly increasing tone.
• The morphological features of tertiary thoracic osteochondrosis are very clear, affecting all structural anatomical components of the spine. The patient has the following pathological picture: there are hernias and protrusions of the intervertebral discs, muscles and ligaments become inflamed, tears form on them, the vertebrae move, symptoms of arthrosis of the vertebral joints develop. In the third stage, the clinical picture of spinal disease is very diverse. In addition to the fact that a person has real pain in osteochondrosis of the chest, the patient loses the tactile response of the part of the body through which the damaged nerve passes; he has disorders of the autonomic nervous system, accompanied by malfunctions of the respiratory and circulatory systems. He has difficulty breathing, heart pain, arrhythmia, shortness of breath. In addition, the patient develops osteoarthritis of several joints at once, and pathological disorders of the organs in the chest begin. Similar symptoms appear when the height of the intervertebral fissure is reduced by two-thirds. Its size is assessed by chest radiography performed in two projections: straight and lateral.
• With the development of degenerative processes in the spine to the fourth degree osteochondrosis, the intervertebral fissure narrows to a minimum distance, spondylosis, spondyloarthritis (characterized by pathological changes in the vertebral joints), spondylolisthesis (vertebrae are bent or). displaced) develops. By reducing the static and dynamic load on the spine, the body mobilizes its compensatory capacity to prevent damage to the anatomical elements, which allows the vertebrae to grow, straighten and grow with each other. The damaged area of the annulus fibrosus is replaced by a bone structure, osteophytes (bone protrusions) are formed, the spinal cord is narrowed, the nerve endings are strongly compressed, and the motor activity of the thorax. The spine is significantly limited, the person has constant pain in the chest region from behind.
• As the disease progresses, the patient develops back pain (lumbago), complete or partial paralysis of the legs, loss of ability to work, and disability.

Different symptomatic manifestations of the disease depend on various causes, including human genetic predisposition. The same symptoms of thoracic lumbar osteochondrosis fail in different ways in different patients. There is an objective explanation for this: various causes, conditions of occurrence and the general state of human health cause osteochondrosis. Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis in men appear a little earlier than in women. The main reason for this phenomenon is the physiological structure of the female body: the hormone estrogen protects the intervertebral discs, so changes in the hormonal background (during pregnancy, menopause) create a particularly favorable environment for the disease.

Many are wondering whether they will be drafted into the army with osteochondrosis. If a conscript has first-degree osteochondrosis, he will be drafted into the army. When a young person has an obvious symptomatology of the disease, observed by a neurologist, there is a possibility of delay, in a state of indifference (if there is polysegmental osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine), they can not call at all. .

Reasons for appearance

Thoracic osteochondrosis does not manifest itself in virtually anything at the beginning of its occurrence. But you need to know why this might appear. The following causes cause pathology:

• Regular static or dynamic overexertion of the spine as a result of active, strength training in professional athletes or people engaged in sports without proper load control.
• Traumatic damage to the bones and articular elements of the spine often causes them to misalign and collapse rapidly. Any damage to the spine is aggravated by pathological changes in the functioning of the structures of the nervous and circulatory systems. The proper supply of nutrients to the bones is often restored over a very long period of time.
• Poor posture, congenital or acquired curvature of the spine, which has an unbalanced effect on the intervertebral discs.
• Sharp lifting of weights, when most of the load falls on the chest area of the back. If a person constantly performs such actions, then the probability of developing osteochondrosis of the chest is high.

• Disorders of the endocrine system. When metabolic processes in the body are disrupted, all other organs and tissues do not receive the necessary nutrients, and their recovery is not correct.
• Genetic conditions of possible pathological processes in the spine, intervertebral discs. In this case, thoracic osteochondrosis manifests itself in absolutely every age category.
• Insufficient physical and physical activity of a person, sedentary work. In this condition, the muscular framework of the back weakens, tissue nutrition deteriorates, the elasticity of the spine decreases, and the risk of developing thoracic osteochondrosis increases significantly.
• Underdevelopment of all tissues of the musculoskeletal system, leading to degenerative disorders of the spine. The reason is an unbalanced, excessive load on the spine.
• Various pathological changes in the intervertebral discs. They can become thinner or, conversely, grow, they may show osteophytes, interfere with the functioning of the joints, as well as damage blood vessels and compress nerve fibers. The development of intervertebral hernias often stimulates the development of osteochondrosis.
• Inflammatory processes in the spine or nearby muscles often cause symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis in women and men.
• Disruption of blood supply to the spinal cord due to narrowing or constriction of blood vessels and arteries.
• Consequences of infectious diseases are the development or exacerbation of osteochondrosis.
• Hypothermia, abuse of bad habits, malnutrition.
• Psychosomatics are different, ie constant stress and nervous excitement can also cause osteochondrosis.

There are several reasons for the development of thoracic osteochondrosis, so it is necessary to pay attention to prevention to prevent its development.

Common symptoms

The symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis are similar in women and men. Usually, during an exacerbation, a progressive disease manifests itself with the following symptoms.

• Severe pain in the thoracic spine. They are caused by prolonged restlessness during physical labor.
• Radicular syndrome as a result of compression of nerve endings.
• Intercostal neuralgia.
• Appearance of spasms in the back muscles.
• Altered condition of the heart muscle, pain can not be eliminated by taking special medications.

In addition, during an attack of thoracic osteochondrosis, the patient may experience atypical symptoms: tachycardia, dizziness, heartburn, increased or decreased blood pressure. Body temperature, as a rule, does not change.

Diagnostic methods

If the doctor thinks that the patient has osteochondrosis, then he will suggest the following tests to diagnose the pathology.

• X-ray examination, they determine: the boundaries and size of the intervertebral discs, existing bone growths, changes in the shape of the vertebrae, etc.
• Radiography with a contrast agent allows to assess the degree of disc destruction in the diagnosis of osteochondrosis of the thoracic region.

• CT or MRI shows a layered view of the altered structures. These methods are used in the most difficult situations.
• With the help of electromyography, the neurological symptoms associated with a disease in the thoracic region are distinguished.

Basic rules of treatment

The following main points are observed in the treatment of osteochondrosis of the thoracic region:

1. By correcting your posture with the first signs of osteochondrosis, you can prevent its further development.
2. Any, even minor symptoms of the disease require conservative therapy.
3. Long-term and systematic application of additional methods to drug therapy is required to achieve a positive result in treatment.
4. If the disease is neglected, then surgery is needed.

When deciding how to treat osteochondrosis of the thoracic region, the doctor will take into account the stage of development of the disease, the individual characteristics of the patient, as well as possible side effects on the body.

Drug treatment

Conservative therapy involves the use of the following groups of drugs.

• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, painkillers or glucocorticosteroids are prescribed to reduce the symptoms of pain and inflammation. They are available in various pharmacological forms (tablets, solutions for injection, ointments), so your doctor will advise you on exactly how to treat the disease.
• Chondroprotectors are used to stimulate the regeneration of cartilage tissue.
• Antispasmodics and muscle relaxants are used to relieve muscle spasms.
• To relieve unbearable back pain, the patient may be offered injections for osteochondrosis - blockade with anesthetic drugs.

The following additional treatments are widely used as a combined treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis.

1. With the help of acupuncture, you can get results quickly - get rid of pain. The advantages of the technique include: high efficiency in the short term, the rare occurrence of side effects in the body, an insignificant list of contraindications, a painless technique. Acupuncture should not be used if a person is diagnosed with malignant neoplasms, exacerbation of inflammation, or mental disorders during pregnancy. The duration of treatment is selected individually.
2. Thanks to the possibilities of manual therapy, the blood supply to the damaged areas of the body is improved, the intensity of pain is reduced, muscle spasms are eliminated, ligaments are restored, and the development of osteochondrosis is slowed down.
3. Treatment of osteochondrosis with the help of physiotherapy is used everywhere, because using them, drugs are injected into the painful area. Thus, for example, NSAIDs, glucocorticosteroids, etc. electrophoresis is used. In addition to electrophoresis, UHF, magnetotherapy, and vacuum are often prescribed. The main goal achieved by physiotherapy methods is to improve blood circulation in the painful area.
4. A course of massage is often prescribed to relieve spasms in the back muscles. Classical massage is used in remission, and vibration massage is used in acute period. If the patient has an intervertebral hernia, the use of massage techniques is not recommended.
5. Physiotherapy is of great importance in treatment. In each case, a special set of exercises is selected individually by the doctor.
6. Diet is important in the treatment of osteochondrosis. It is important to include in the patient's diet the necessary amount of protein, chondroitin (for this you need to eat jelly, jelly meat, aspic foods), vegetables, fruits. You can’t overeat; Avoid fried and fatty foods.

How to treat thoracic osteochondrosis at home

Folk remedies can also be applied, but you should consult your doctor before using any of them. The following recipes are popular.

• To prepare the infusion of celery root, take 3-4 g of raw material, chop, pour 1 liter of boiling water. After 8 hours, the infusion is filtered and taken with a dessert spoon up to three times a day.
• To prepare the broth, take 2-3 sunflower roots, cut them into pieces about 1 cm, pour three liters of boiling water and boil for another 3 minutes. Used as a tea.
• At home, you can prepare an ointment to rub painful areas. Mix 150 g of lard with 2 tablespoons. l. wax, heated for 20 minutes in a water bath, then add 1 tbsp. l. fir oil, continue to heat the same amount, then add 1 tbsp. l. ammonia. The product is stored in a cool place in a glass bowl.

Home treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis is usually used in addition to medication in mild periods or during exacerbations.

Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is a disease that must be taken seriously to prevent adverse consequences. For its successful treatment, you should carefully consider the doctor's recommendations and follow them in a disciplined manner.