Pain in osteochondrosis

Pain in osteochondrosis is explained by a strong mechanical irritation of the nerve endings that pass from the spinal cord between the vertebrae, creating a peripheral nervous system. The branched nervous system provides thermoregulation, controls motor and sensory functions, is responsible for coordination of movements and muscle tone. The slightest squeezing of receptors by fragments of intervertebral discs or bone outgrowths that develop due to osteochondrosis causes pain.

The mechanism of development of pain is as follows:

1. intervertebral discs begin to deform, 
2. develops protrusion - the disc protrudes without tearing the fibrous ring, 
3. bone growths are formed - osteophytes, 
4. the surrounding degenerative disc (or site) is compressed by blood vessels and nerve endings, 
5. develops a pain syndrome, the nature of which can vary depending on the position of the body, the severity of the degenerative process.

The localization of osteochondrosis can be different, however in clinical practice the disease is diagnosed according to the following types: 

• More than half of all patients suffer from lumbosacral osteochondrosis. 
• More than a quarter of all patients suffer from cervical osteochondrosis. 
• More than 10% of patients suffer from chest osteochondrosis. 
• A fairly rare type of disease is a common osteochondrosis.

Pain in osteochondrosis is caused by a lesion: 

• Corpus - the body of the vertebra.
• Discus intervertebralis-intervertebral disc.
• Ligamenta - ligamentous apparatus.
• Musculus - paravertebral muscles.

[1], [2], [3], [4], [5]

What are the most common pains associated with osteochondrosis?

Patients with diagnosed osteochondrosis present typical complaints of chronic aching pain in the lumbar region or neck, they are often associated with a feeling of numbness and tingling in the fingers or toes (paresthesia), a feeling of aching in the joints. If the disease lasts a long time, pathological changes in the motor roots can occur, stiffness, a decrease in tendon reflexes, and even muscle atrophy. Characteristic for osteochondrosis signs and pain symptoms can be described as follows: 

1. Chronic pain in the back. 
2. Sore and paresthesia of the extremities.
3. Pain changes the level of intensity when lifting weights, physical activity, sharp bends and even when sneezing. 
4. Periodic muscle spasms are accompanied by pain. 
5. Reduction of the volume and activity of movements due to severe pain.

The pain in osteochondrosis depends on the localization and prevalence of the disease. If the nerve endings are included in the degenerative process, radicular syndrome develops, that is, radicular pains, when osteochondrosis is complicated by intervertebral hernia, spinal pain develops, which are considered to be the most acute, severe. Most often, the disease is accompanied by a vegetative syndrome - cardialgia, pain in the stomach, in the right abdominal part of the abdomen. If we summarize all the numerous pain symptoms, then they can be systematized as follows: 

1. Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine: 
   • Pain in the upper parts of the shoulder.
   • Pain in the hand (or hands). 
   • Headache. 
   • Syndrome of the vertebral artery - dizziness, "flies", spots before the eyes, sensation of noise in the head, throbbing pain in the head. 
2. Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine: 
   • Pain in the heart. 
   • Pain in the right or left hypochondrium. 
   • Pain in the middle of the sternum, which patients describe as a "stab in the chest." 
   • Pain in the region of the heart, irradiating in the arm, under the scapula. 
3. Osteochondrosis of the lumbosacral department: 
   • Pain in the lower back, often radiating in the leg (in the legs), in the pelvic organs. 
   • Shooting pain in the lower back. 
   • Radical pain (radicular syndrome).

Pain in cervical osteochondrosis

A typical manifestation of pain in cervical osteochondrosis is vertebral artery syndrome, which is manifested by such symptoms: 

• Migraine (cervical migraine) - pain begins gradually, most often in the occipital region, spreads on one side of the head, grabbing the eye, forehead, ear. Vestibular disturbances are possible - it seems to the person that he hears noise or ringing, his head is spinning, and often nausea becomes vomiting. Pain can increase with the slightest movement. 
• A pharyngeal migraine is a symptom that is characterized by a headache and difficulty in swallowing. 
• Headache, accompanied by fainting with sudden movements or bends. 
• Arterial pressure jumps, which are often diagnosed as a vegetative-vascular dystonia syndrome according to the hypertonic type. The syndrome is often accompanied by severe attacks of fear, panic.

Syndrome of compression of spinal nerve endings - radicular syndrome: 

• Severe pain in the cervical vertebrae, initially aching, pulling character, then it intensifies and causes a headache. 
• Pain in the nape and numbness of the upper cervical region (infringement of roots in the zone of the first and second vertebrae). 
• Painful sensations, a feeling of numbness in the ear - squeezing the nerve root in the zone of the third vertebra. 
• Feeling of increased, like "foreign" language, difficulty with eating - infringement of the third cervical root. 
• Pain in the right or left collarbone, syndrome "coma in the throat", cardialgia - infringement of the fourth nerve root. 
• Difficulties with the movement of the hand - it is difficult to lift or move your hand to the side - damage to the fifth vertebra. 
• Severe pain in the neck, giving to the scapula, arm and thumb - infringement of the sixth vertebra. 
• Pain in the neck, irradiating in the arm and the index, less often the middle finger - degeneration of the seventh cervical vertebra and infringement of the nerve roots. 
• The pain that begins in the neck and gives the little finger to the little finger is squeezing the eighth nerve root.

Pain in cervical osteochondrosis can develop gradually, increasing and spreading throughout the body. Often, painful sensations are observed in the right and left arm in combination with the numbness of all fingers of the hand.

Headaches with osteochondrosis

The reason for the headache in osteochondrosis is explained by the fact that the body tries to stop the degenerative process with the help of muscle spasm, usually in the cervical region. Spasms lead to a violation of the local circulation, tissue swelling develops, the nerve bundles squeeze, provoking a pain symptom.

According to neurologists, the most common cause of headache caused by osteochondrosis is muscular-fascial syndrome (lower oblique muscle syndrome) of the cervical spine. With constant muscular tension of the lower oblique muscle of the head, gradual compression of the arteria vertebralis - the vertebral artery and the large occipital nerve - develops. Blood supply to the brain is disturbed, blood pressure rises and pain appears.

Headaches for osteochondrosis are well studied and clinically manifested by the following symptoms: 

• The pain is aching, and then bursting in character.
• Pain quickly spreads from the neck area through the subcranial fossa to the occiput.
• The pain is permanent, which distinguishes it from migraine attacks.
• Pain can be accompanied by vestibular disorders.
• The pain increases with static (not physical) tension - maintaining a static posture.
• Pain can be accompanied by paresthesia - a sensation of tingling, "creepy" in the occipital region.
• Pain can increase, develop into a syndrome of "helmet".

Headache with cervical osteochondrosis

Syndrome of the vertebral artery is characteristic for the early stage of osteochondrosis. Headache with cervical osteochondrosis, as a rule, is diffuse with pronounced localization in the cervico-occipital zone. Painful sensations persecute a person literally around the clock, intensifying in the morning hours. Vestibular disorders accompanying a headache are provoked by physical exertion or abrupt movements. If bone-fibrous proliferation squeezes a large area of the artery, the pain appears even with simple turns of the head. Swaying (ataxia), a possible decrease in vision or hearing, nausea occur when the headache becomes violent. This symptomatology is peculiar to hypertension, and indeed, when measuring blood pressure, its indices are far from normal. However, venous congestion does not respond to the standard etiotropic treatment of hypertension, although the crisis state develops in all respects. Chronic changes in vascular innervation due to the growth of osteophytes lead to a persistent increase in pressure, which is diagnosed as essential hypertension.

Pain in the neck with osteochondrosis

Pain in the neck with osteochondrosis is most often associated with vertebral syndrome, less often with spinal syndromes or osteochondrosis caused by myelopathy.

Degenerative changes in intervertebral discs in the cervical spine provoke the following types of syndromes: 

1. Cervicalgia is a localized pain in the neck. 
2. Reflex pain in the neck, giving in the arm - cervicobrahialgia. 
3. Reflected pain in the neck and head - cervicocranium.
4. Radiculopathy (radicular syndrome).
5. Cervical myelopathy.

Pain in the neck with osteochondrosis, called cervicalgia, is characterized by a paroxysmal character. Gradually, the body adapts to pain attacks, the pain becomes chronic and not so intense. Acute cervicalgia is felt like a shooting, patients describe it as an electric shock. Pain is most often felt in the depth of the neck muscles. The pain symptom is most intense in the morning, localized on the one hand and always combined with stiffness, stiff neck. Also, the pain in the neck with osteochondrosis increases with tension, coughing. A person is literally unable to turn his head to the side. An attack of acute cervicalgia can last several weeks, chronic pain in the cervical spine lasts for years.

Pain in the eyes with osteochondrosis

Orbital pain in osteochondrosis is associated with a syndrome of the vertebral artery, which is also classified as posterior cervical sympathetic syndrome or cervical migraine. Pain in the eyes with osteochondrosis always develops against a background of headache. Painful sensations "start" in the cervico-occipital region and are mostly dull, aching in nature. Then the pain transforms into a pulsating, constricting and begins to irradiate into one half of the head. Neurologists noticed a typical sign of such pain and called it "taking off a helmet" - so patients describe and show the pain zone when they pass a hand from the beginning of the nape to the forehead. Pain really spreads in such a sequence, affecting the ocular areas. Pain in the eyes with osteochondrosis is localized behind the eyeball and wears a blunt, pulling character due to a persistent increase in retinal pressure. Retroorbital pains are usually one-sided, that is, one eye hurts. The side of irradiating pain corresponds to the side of the common cervico-occipital syndrome. If the syndrome recurs, retroorbital pain can pass from one eye to the other. Pain in the eyes with osteochondrosis is always accompanied by a certain degree of visual impairment due to a violation of the normal blood supply to the eyeballs and the formation of eye hypoxia.

Sore throat with osteochondrosis

The pain in the throat with osteochondrosis is most often explained by the syndrome of the vertebral artery.

Pressure on the basilar artery by deformed discs leads to reflex spasms of the artery itself and the surrounding muscle tissue. The lumen of the artery significantly decreases, blood supply is disturbed. A typical symptom of the vertebral artery is primarily a headache, however, if pathological innervation lasts a long time, the neuralgia of the glossopharyngeal nerve can develop. Sore throat with osteochondrosis, the feeling of a constant coma in the throat in clinical practice is called a pharyngeal migraine. Also a symptom of paresthesia of the pharynx and tongue is known as the Barre-Liège syndrome. The glottic-guttural problems manifest themselves in the form of changes in sensitivity, numbness and pain in the sky, tongue, throat. Patients complain of the sensation of an alien, foreign body in the larynx, often clears throat, experiencing difficulty in eating.

Pain in breast osteochondrosis

Osteochondrosis of the thoracic region is most often provoked by a static posture, when a person sits behind the wheel of a car, performs office sitting work. An unreasonable, uncomfortable posture, as well as lateral curvature of the spine (scoliosis), of course, are not the only factors that activate degeneration and deformation of intervertebral discs, however, they create an additional burden on the spinal column. The pain in chest osteochondrosis is different in intensity and divided in a clinical sense into two categories: 

1. Dorsago - a sudden, sharp pain, paroxysmal, intense. Such pain in chest osteochondrosis limits the mobility of the back and can provoke a severe shortness of breath. 
2. Dorsalgia - prolonged, chronic pain in the area of deformed vertebrae. Pain is not intense, often a person can tolerate it for a long time, in addition, dorsalgia does not restrict movement too much and has little effect on overall physical activity.

In addition to dorsal and dorsalgia, pain in chest osteochondrosis can be irradiated to the heart area. This is due to the fact that in the sternum zone the vertebral canal is very narrow and vulnerable to squeezing with protrusions or hernias. One of the most dangerous manifestations of infringement of nervous beams in this department is compression of the spinal cord, as it provokes serious cardiological conditions, causes pathological changes in the liver, pancreas. Pain sensations in the chest caused by osteochondrosis are often similar to those of other pathologies - angina, appendicitis, renal colic and even heart attack.

Pain in the heart with osteochondrosis

It should be noted that researches of scientists in recent years have shown that cervical osteochondrosis is not such a rare cause of pain in the heart (approximately 10-28% of all cases of heart pain are to some extent associated with osteochondrosis).

The appearance of such symptoms of osteochondrosis always causes anxiety to patients, and they put themselves various "terrible" diagnoses: "heart disease", "angina" and even "myocardial infarction." Having diagnosed one of these diseases in oneself, patients often start treatment methods, drawn from acquaintances or from medical popular scientific literature. And since the medical measures are not directed at the mechanisms that triggered the clinical manifestations, the result is unsuccessful.

In this regard, I would like to stop the reader's attention to explaining the features of the symptoms (clinical manifestations) and the mechanisms of the development of pain in the region of the heart, caused by cervical osteochondrosis.

The syndrome of pain in the heart area with osteochondrosis is also called "reflex angina", "vegetative cardialgia", "discogenic (" neck ") cardialgia." There are other names, but not in them, names are important for the patient, but whether the pains in the heart are related to cardiac pathology, or whether they are based on the mechanisms caused by painful processes in the spine, it is very important for every person.

If in the first case the patient can be threatened with myocardial infarction, which, as is known, is a threat to life, in the second case such danger is excluded.

The clinical manifestations of cardialgia are very diverse. But the main sign is the appearance of constant pain in the heart. Pain can become paroxysmally aggravated, but mostly they are resistant in nature - deep, pressing or drilling, often accompanied by palpitations. A peculiarity of such heart pain is their blurred expression. Often, there is a feeling of heaviness or a feeling of warmth in the heart, a sense of anxiety. From the reception of validol and even nitroglycerin, such pains usually do not disappear.

In such patients there is soreness of the spinous processes of the lower cervical vertebrae. They have weakness of the little finger on the left arm, the strength of the muscles involved in flexion and extension, reduction and retraction of the main phalanx of the little finger decreases. Pain increases with movement in the cervical spine and arms.

On an electrocardiogram, there are no abnormalities.

In addition to this kind of pain, there may be another. This happens when painful impulses from the cervical region spread to the muscles of the anterior surface of the thorax, which are innervated by the fifth, sixth and seventh cervical roots.

In this case, the pains are localized not only in the heart area, but in the entire left upper quadrant of the body: the chest, neck, arm, and sometimes even the face. Pain also lasts for hours, and sometimes even for days. At the same time, as with the first form of heart pain, there are no vascular disorders even at the height of the attack, validol and nitroglycerin seizures do not stop and on the electrocardiogram the changes characteristic of the nfarkt are not detected. As an example of the development of pseudostenocardia associated with osteochondrosis, the following clinical observation can be made.

Chest pain with osteochondrosis

The thoracic department of a backbone at an osteochondrosis is amazed very seldom. One of the main reasons for the development of breast osteochondrosis is the curvature of the spine (scoliosis). As a rule, all the prerequisites for the future development of breast osteochondrosis are formed from the school bench. The thoracic calving of the spine is the least mobile, so the signs and symptoms of breast osteochondrosis are very different from the symptoms of cervical or lumbar osteochondrosis. In most cases, the main difference between breast osteochondrosis is the absence of acute pain in the back (as opposed to cervical or lumbar osteochondrosis), and the presence of blunt, aching pains in the back.

[6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11]

Symptoms and signs of breast osteochondrosis

The main symptoms and signs of breast osteochondrosis are: 

• Chest pain. As a rule, chest pain with osteochondrosis is aggravated by movement and during breathing. In most cases, pain in chest osteochondrosis is shrouded in nature.
• Numbness, a feeling of crawling in the chest.
• Pain in the heart, liver, stomach. Very often chest osteochondrosis is masked for other diseases (for example, angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, peptic ulcer, gastritis).
• Violation of sexual function (impotence in men).

Pain in the hand with osteochondrosis

Movement, sensation and coordination of the hands is controlled by nerve endings - the brachial plexus located in the zone of the cervicothoracic spine. Pain in the hand with osteochondrosis, more precisely in the fingers, can indicate the possible localization of dystrophic changes in the intervertebral disc: 

• Pain, numbness or burning of the thumb indicates damage to the cervical vertebral discs.
• Painful sensations, tingling in the little finger indicate possible damage to the vertebrae located in the upper thoracic spine or lower part of the cervical region (7th and 8th vertebrae).
• Numbness or pain in the middle and ring finger can indicate deformity of the 7th cervical vertebra.

The pain at the hand with osteochondrosis can develop gradually - up to six months, beginning with minor signs - aching sensations in the shoulder, swelling of the hand, stiffness of the fingers. Most often, one arm hurts, mostly at night, accompanied by persistent numbness. A certain symptom in the arm always corresponds to a definite point in the area of the scapula, where there is an exit of the suprascapular nerve. The pain in the shoulder grows, spreads to the neck, perhaps downwards - to the elbow, then to the hand. The hand is limited in movement, there are persistent, sometimes very sharp, stitching pains.

Pain with lumbar osteochondrosis

If osteochondrosis develops in the lumbar region, the pain is almost inevitable, since there are a lot of nerve endings in this zone. Pain in lumbar osteochondrosis is characterized by classic radicular syndrome. Clinically, the syndrome is manifested by vertebral symptoms - changes in the statics and dynamics (volume) of movements, and severe pain also appears.

Pain in lumbar osteochondrosis is divided into acute, chronic or subacute.

Acute pain or lumbago called lumbago. This pain develops paroxysmally for several minutes, less often hours. Provokes acute lumbar pain with a sharp or awkward movement. The nature of the pain sensations stitching, spreading deeply into the tissue, often a pain symptom is accompanied by a burning sensation or vice versa, numbness in the lumbar region, possibly increased sweating. Lumbalia may last from 3 to 7 days, as a rule, the primary attack takes place within one to two days, the following may be delayed for weeks. Subacute or chronic lumbalgia most often provokes severe hypothermia, drafts, static load on the lumbar region. A similar symptom develops gradually and is localized on one side of the lower back. Pain can increase with tilts, bends, chronic lumbargia lasts for months at a time, accompanied by irradiating pains in the buttock, sacrum or leg.

Back pain in osteochondrosis

Pain in the lower back with osteochondrosis is divided according to the vertebrogenic classification: 

1. Reflex pain: 
   • Lumbago - lumbago, acute pain in the lower back, which is provoked by lifting weights, sudden movements, excessive physical activity, less often coughing or even sneezing.
   • Lumbalia is a chronic, moderate intensity pain. Develops gradually after a monotonous physical load, a static posture, most often with constant sedentary work.
   • Lumboscialgia - diffuse lumbar pain, radiating in most often in one leg. This kind of lumbar osteochondrosis is always combined with neurotrophic changes in muscle tissues, vegetative-vascular manifestations. 
2. Radicular syndromes are discogenic (vertebrogenic) sciatica of the lumbosacral region, most often caused by deformation of the fifth or first root. 
3. Radicular-vascular syndromes are radiculo-ischemia, when in addition to the nerve roots, the root veins and arteries are innervated.

[12]

Pain in the leg with osteochondrosis

Pain in the leg with osteochondrosis often occurs due to functional blockade of the sacroiliac joints, less often the lumbar zone of the spinal column. The clinical picture, characteristic for lesions of the lumbosacral section, is manifested in pain localized closer to the median line, the damaged upper lumbar region is manifested by pain in the peritoneum. The blockade of the sacroiliac joint is characterized by irradiating pain in the leg - along the entire back surface, beginning from the hip, ending with the knee.

Also, pain in the leg with osteochondrosis can be associated with pear-shaped muscle syndrome, which is provoked by squeezing the sciatic nerve where it exits the pelvis. The radicular syndrome is manifested by dull, aching pains on the entire surface of the foot, giving off in the foot. Often, radicular pain causes a sensation of numbness or acute burning sensation in the foot.

If osteochondrosis develops over many years, the knee or hip joint may be affected, which leads to pains of a different nature, characteristic of arthritis and arthrosis.

Pain in the abdomen with osteochondrosis

Pain in the abdomen with osteochondrosis is fixed in 10-15% of patients with this disease.

Clinical manifestations: 

• The pain is localized, not diffuse.
• The pain is localized in the innervation zone of the deformed segment of the spinal cord.
• Pain most often does not extend into the interior, it is felt at the level of muscle tissue.
• Pain appears and intensifies when turning, moving the trunk.
• Pain appears when coughing, defecation due to changes in intra-abdominal pressure.
• Pain is usually one-sided and is associated with pain in the lumbar region or back.
• Pain, as a rule, is constant, aching, dull, intensified when provoked by movements.
• Pain in the abdomen with osteochondrosis is accompanied by restriction of movement in the back, stiffness.

Pain in the abdominal region caused by osteochondrosis is explained by vegetative mechanisms and viscus-taut reaction, provoked by neurodystrophic pathological changes in the abdominal muscular tissue.

Pain in the stomach with osteochondrosis

Almost all the organs of the abdominal cavity are connected by nervous support with the segments of the thoracic zone of the spinal column. It is for this reason that the deformation of the intervertebral discs in the sternum (chest osteochondrosis) often causes painful sensations in the digestive organs. Pain in the stomach with osteochondrosis is often qualified as gastroduodenitis. The fact is that the restrained vegetative part of the spinal root provokes gradual changes in the internal organs: where the infringement occurs, irritation or spasm develops, often nerve palsy and discomfort in the form of traumatic pains and even heartburn. Over time, the symptoms increase, the digestion process is disrupted, and the person turns to the gastroenterologist. Indeed, for some time the symptoms disappear, but relapse is inevitable, and the pain in the stomach with osteochondrosis acquires a permanent character. Distinguish the painful sippmot associated with the infringement of the mid-thoracic roots, from the true gastric pathologies simply: the pain intensifies with sharp turns, active movements, especially when they involve the thoracic spine.

Pain in the abdomen with osteochondrosis

Most often, the pains in the lower abdomen associated with osteochondrosis are associated with deformation of intervertebral discs in the lumbar, less often in the thoracic region. Thoracic osteochondrosis is characterized by periodically manifested pain on the right in the lower abdominal region. Symptoms are similar to signs of inflammation of the appendix, except that there is no fever and a symptom of Shchetkin-Blumberg when palpation. Also, the pains in the lower abdomen with osteochondrosis can resemble the clinical picture of gastritis, colitis, in women - algomenorrhea. There are literally all the gastroenterological signs - heartburn, nausea, heaviness in the right hypochondrium, or stitching pains on the lower right, spasms, bloating, pain "under the stomach". There may be constipation accompanied by pain in the lower abdomen. Such a pain syndrome is explained by the involvement of the innervated thoracic and lumbar ganglia in the pathologically disturbed process - accumulations of dendrites and axons of nerve cells. To distinguish osteochondrosis pains from the symptoms of a digestive system is very difficult. To avoid possible complications, it is better to see a doctor.

Acute pain with osteochondrosis

Acute pain in osteochondrosis is most often associated with radicular syndrome. Compression of the roots is caused not only by bone growths, but also by hernias, when the core of the damaged disc squeezes the spinal roots, arteries. If osteochondrosis is not diagnosed and treated, any physical load provokes the infiltration into the blood of the molecules of the damaged nucleus through the cracks of the fibrous ring. The answer to this pathological process is the development of antibodies by the immune system, as a result, the zone of the deformed disc develops inflammation with edema of nearby fiber. Edema adds a compression action to the spinal root, there is acute, severe pain.

Acute pain with osteochondrosis occurs sporadically and can last for many months, gradually transforming into chronic, less intense pain.

[13], [14], [15], [16], [17]

Treatment of pain in osteochondrosis

Osteochondrosis is a multifactorial, chronic degenerative destruction of all elements of the spine - from the discs to the muscles and ligaments. Therefore, the treatment of pain with osteochondrosis can be quite lengthy and stubborn. The therapeutic measures that help stop the process of deformation of the intervertebral discs are, first of all, aimed at solving such problems: 

Pain relief 

1. Restoration of the destroyed elements of the spinal column and maximum preservation of areas unaffected by degeneration.
2. Treatment of pain in osteochondrosis at the first stages of the development of the disease is most often performed on an outpatient basis. With acute pain and total degeneration of the discs and surrounding tissues, hospitalization is indicated.

The choice of method of treatment depends on the nature, localization of pain and the general condition of the patient. In the treatment of pain symptoms in osteochondrosis, the following methods are standard: 

1. Medicamentous treatment, including anesthesia (blockade).
2. In severe neurodegenerative lesions of the vertebrae, surgical treatment is indicated.
3. Dry traction (autogravitational therapy).

Physiotherapeutic procedures: 

1. Acupuncture.
2. Vacuum procedures.
3. Magnetopuncture.
4. Electrostimulation.
5. Manual therapy (gentle techniques, post-isometric relaxation).
6. Physiotherapy.
7. Diet

How to relieve pain with osteochondrosis?

A natural and fully explainable way to relieve pain in osteochondrosis is to comply with bed rest. In uncomplicated cases, 3-5 days of complete rest and application of external anesthetics are sufficient to neutralize the pain. Independent medication for osteochondrosis should be minimal. How to relieve pain in osteochondrosis is best known to an experienced doctor who not only helps to neutralize painful symptoms, but also appoints a set of measures that restore the spine. If the visit to the doctor in the near future is impossible for some reason, and the pain is unbearable, the following measures should be taken: 

• Ensure the immobility of the spine (reduce the load on the vertebral column).
• Take a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug - any one based on diclofenac (Dicloberl, Naklofen, Olfen, Orthofen). Drugs are taken 30-40 minutes after eating. You can take medications myelorelaxants - Movalis or Meloks or preparations of the ibuprofen group - Dolgit, Ibuprofen, Nurofen.
• Take a diuretic that helps to remove puffiness in places of infringement.
• Lubricate the pain zone with warming ointments - Finalgon, Espol, Nikofleks.
• Apply to the pain site ointment containing anesthetics - lidocaine or novocaine.

How to relieve pain with osteochondrosis, if it does not pass within a week? The answer is clear - to call a doctor to get qualified help.

How to relieve pain with osteochondrosis?

The first thing that a person suffering from pain is trying to do is find the most comfortable position of the body. Indeed, the question "how to relieve pain with osteochondrosis" often has a simple answer - you need to take a comfortable posture that allows you to relax muscles of the neck, back and waist as much as possible. The pose can be absolutely any - on a back, on a stomach or belly, on a side. If a person chooses a position lying on his back, it is advisable to bend his legs in the knees, laying a roller under them from the blanket. Legs should lie on the dais, without touching the feet of the bed. You can also put a small pillow under your waist or raise your head.

It is necessary to comply with bed rest for at least three days.

• Do not make sudden movements, turns.
• Apply an anesthetic or warming ointment to the pain site.
• Apply a woolly dry compress to the affected area, which has been rubbed with ointment.
• If the pain develops in the lower back - the lower back, it should be bandaged with elastic material (fixed).
• Therapeutic exercise is permissible only after 5-7 days after the neutralization of pain. Any exercise during a painful attack can exacerbate the severity of the disease.
• During the observance of bed rest, a sparing diet is shown-small portions, the exclusion of fried and spicy dishes, a diuretic is shown.

After the pain is gone, in order to avoid relapse, you must follow three simple rules: 

1. It is reasonable and right to use the spine - to know how to lift weights, sit properly, get up and so on.
2. A balanced full-fledged diet, including products containing glucosamine, helps restore the normal operation of the spine.
3. The complex of physiotherapy exercises will not only strengthen the muscles, but also activate mobility, flexibility of the spinal column.