Lumbar spine osteochondrosis - signs, diagnosis and treatment

Lumbar osteochondrosis is a common disease of the musculoskeletal system.The lumbar spinal column is more susceptible to injuries due to good mobility.In addition, with inadequate and prolonged seats in combination with a low action lifestyle, rapid wear of cartilage fabric, which leads to osteochondrosis.

You should know how to recognize the first signs to receive qualified medical assistance in a timely manner.

Brief information about osteochondrosis of the lumbosacra spine

Back pain is one of the most common complaints of patients with a traumatologist.The second name of the syndrome is the dorsalgia of the intervertebral discs.According to statistics, on average 8 out of 10 people during their lives, at least once they complained of discomfort in the lower back.Approximately one third of the patients who have seen the doctor, pain syndrome acquires a persistent pathological character, causing severe discomfort and painful condition in the patient.Long back pain may not only cause physical torment but also cause mental instability.

Since cartilage fabric loses its strength and elasticity, it begins to become gradually thinner and collapse.As a result, cracks occur in fibrous rings of intervertebral discs.Over time, under pressure, the fibrous ring extends, projects and explodes.If the contents of the fibrous ring is a pulpitic nucleus, it goes out, a hernia forms.For this reason, osteochondrosis increases the chances of the appearance of such formidable complications.

The causes of the occurrence of the disease

In most cases, osteochondrosis has a hereditary nature.It is proven that if direct relatives suffered from degenerative diseases of the muscle system -their children, their children find more often pathologies from the spine.

Other cases have extrovertebral reasons:

1. Keeping posture inadequate.
2. Excessive muscle overvoltage associated with great physical effort at work or playing sports.
3. Incorrect and frequent weight lifting.
4. One of the most common reasons is hypodinamia.Lack of movement and minimum physical activity usually leads to problems with the spine than playing sports.
5. Inflammatory infections previously transferred - tuberculosis or osteomyelitis, contribute to the manifestation of degenerative processes in the spine.In this case, osteochondrosis will have an infectious nature and will be a complication.
6. Hormonal perestroika can cause lumbosacral sacral osteochondrosis.This phenomenon is more often associated with certain periods of age.A frequent example is to enter menopause.After the cessation of monthly cycles, a woman has a drop in sex hormones, because calcium is practically ceased to be absorbed by the body.Bone reservations are washed intensely.As a result, if you do not put a woman in the GZT, she will gain not only osteochondrosis from the lower back, but also osteoporosis.The risk of osteochondrosis increases with the frequent use of synthetic glucocorticosteroids.The risk is increased during puberty with lack of nutrition, with exhaustive physical effort in combination with a hard diet and when old age occurs.
7. The presence of congenital pathologies of the mountain range, including an anomaly of tropism.
8. Flat feet and scoliosis.
9. The weak structure of bones caused by a nutrition deficit or against the bottom of amenorrhea in women.
10. Premature wear of vertebrates and joints.
11. Pre -modal hypermobility of the mobile spine, which significantly increases the risk of injury.
12. Weak abdominal muscles.
13. The presence of rare pathologies, including a narrow spinal canal, epidural, spondylist fusion, oncology or spine tumor, neuromiositis.
14. The presence of endocrine disorders - obesity and unlipped hypothyroidism.
15. Previously, he suffered injuries to the mountain range, ligaments, joints, tendons.
16. Poor power and psycho -emotional power and tensions.
17. Changes related to degenerative age.

There are also certain risk groups associated with harmful professional activities.Examples are builders, engines, computer scientists, waiters, teachers.To minimize the risk of such diseases, you need to properly distribute the load at the rear and get involved in moderate active physical activity.

Symptoms of Lumbar Osteochondrosis

The disease has many symptoms;Therefore, separately, it is necessary to highlight the classification according to the pain type:

1. Ischemic syndromeassociated with the compression of the arteries that pass through the vertebrae.As a result of the occurrence, a persistent deterioration in blood circulation appears, due to which nutrition is disturbed at the lower ends.It is possible to increase blood pressure.
2. Vertebrate syndromeassociated with deformations that occur in the nerves and vessels.With prolonged negative effects, posture changes, the back are inclined, the march changes and the muscles without physical activity are atrophy.As a result, the patient begins to feel intense pain.
3. Static syndrome.Pathological mobility develops in vertebrae, which may occur kyphosis or lordosis.During the development of the pathology, the spine is gradually deformation, because, in addition to the curvature in the vertebrae, inadequate muscle fixation occurs in the affected areas.The consequences of a static syndrome - the back are distorted and a person is no longer able to straighten it on their own.
4. Neurological syndromeassociated with the pinch of nerve roots.If pressure on nerve endings occurs, patient sensitivity decreases, weakness in the limbs may occur.In severe cases, paralysis, chills and complete loss of conductivity are observed against the nerve fiber damage bottom.

General symptoms of lumbar spine osteochondrosis include the following manifestations:

1. Severe pain at the back of the back, including the entire lower back with a possible return to the sacred.
2. With the development of root syndrome, there are sharp pains that give bastards to the lower limbs.The legs usually capture cramps.On the fingers, there is numbness and paresthesia.Less often, the pain gives to the hands.
3. The irradiation of kidney pain is possible.The patient may complain about the problems of the urinary system, which are not confirmed during the diagnosis.
4. The patient is tormented by a bad dream due to discomfort in the lower back.
5. The patient feels tension and fatigue in the lower back.
6. When turning the back and inclinations, stiffness and tension are felt.
7. The feet occurs in the back periodically.
8. After less physical activity, the patient feels severe fatigue.There is also chronic fatigue in everyday life.
9. With an additional progression of the disease, the patient has resting pain in the lower back.
10. Members are often numb, and the patient usually has a pathological crisis on the back.
11. In violation of engine function due to discomfort at the bottom of the rear.
12. Muscle cramps and spasms.
13. Dizziness and headaches.
14. Reducing the tone of the muscles of the rear and lower ends.

Any similar symptoms require an appeal to the doctor.There are also specific signs associated with gender.Men have problems in the genitourinary sphere, which can negatively affect power.Women have severe pain in the perineum and pelvis, which also indicates damage to nerve endings.In advanced cases, the internal organs occur, including the uterus and the appendages.This is due to strong atrophic processes in the muscles that support the spine.

Varieties of syndromes and symptoms of lumbar spine osteochondrosis

By the type and nature of pain, these pathological conditions share:

1. Lumbago- It is characterized by an acute state.The characteristic signs are the inability to move away from the pain that occurs at the bottom of the bastards.This condition develops more often against the bottom of muscle atrophy, lesions, nerve root pinches and intervertebral discs.
2. Lumbalgia- Pathology characterized by long and painful pain.More often, lumbalgia occurs against the bottom of osteochondrosis, hernia, spondylosis or protrusion.With the stretching of the ligament apparatus, the syndrome is more common.
3. Sciatica.This type of pain syndrome is characteristic of the lumbosacra zone.The syndrome is often confused with Ishias, which is characterized by a firing pain caused by a pinch of nerve roots.Pain syndrome is more often associated with a sciatic nerve pinch, which significantly worsens mobility in the lower back.The patient cannot bend normally, as the mobility of the lower back worsens.It is also difficult to walk and sit normally.The sciatic nerve pinch leads to another unpleasant deterioration - spasm of the pear -shaped muscle.As a result, a person has a back shots to the calf muscles that pass through the thigh.The march becomes thigh, the socks of the legs become the sides and, in the buttock, you feel pain when walking, running and sitting.A comprehensive approach to treatment is required.
4. Discogenic changesassociated with the progression of dorsopathy.The first sign of such deterioration is loss of sensitivity and numbness at the lower ends.The back, buttocks, hips and lower abdomen suffer.All of these zones are permeated by constant discomfort.With a strong deterioration, signs of an inflammatory process occurs - body temperature increases, weakness occurs in the body, urinary incontinence appears.The patient also worsens appetite, which leads to a decrease in body weight.In this situation, an integrated approach to the treatment of the condition is also necessary.
5. RadiculopathyIt is also associated with limiting motor skills of the spine and tightening nerve endings.As a result of the occurrence of this type of pain syndrome, the patient begins to feel pain in the lower body, a decrease or violation of motor reflexes.There is a deterioration in joint mobility and a decrease in muscle tone against a compression fund due to radiculitis.

All pain syndromes above require urgent treatment, starting at the initial stages of manifestations.In fact, over time, the pathology is aggravated, because the course of the disease leads to a strong deterioration in quality of life.

Lumbar spine osteochondrosis - development stages

The overall classification of the disease in stages includes such degrees of development of lumbar osteochondrosis:

1. The first degree does not cause physiological deteriorations of the spine.The patient feels good and does not suspect the presence of problems with the spine.In the early stage, active destructive processes emerge.The pulp core changes its position, gradually dripping by the micro -transsorsias of the fibrous ring.At the beginning of the article, it was mentioned that, before the occurrence of the disease, the patient has a violation of metabolic processes, due to which the cartilage shell weakens and is covered by micro -batras.As a result, over time, the irritation of nerve endings appears, because the patient may feel the first signs of discomfort in the lower back.
2. Second stage osteochondrosis is characterized by the appearance of signs of instability of the lower back.There are dynamic displacements in the vertebrae, in relation to the underlying and underlying section.The patient has signs of compression syndrome and reflex disorders.
3. In the patient, at event 3 of the stage of the pathology, there are already deteriorations associated with the skill of the content of the fibrous ring out.List, prolapse or hernia appear.In the case of the third stage of the pathology, the roots of the spinal canal and the blood vessels are squeezed.At this stage, serious pains associated with tweezers and inflammation occur.Strong mobility is also limited, shelters appear in the lower limbs.
4. The terminal stage is the fourth.At this stage, irreparable pathophysiological changes are already emerging.The patient has bone system pathologies associated with the growth of bone cherry vertebral bodies.As a result, compensatory response reactions appear - the load is transferred to other weaker vertebrates.Inventory, limitation of mobility in the amplitude of the spine.Pathological bone growths press the vascular canal and nerve endings, which significantly overloads the symptomatic course of the pathology.

Lumbar osteochondrosis - Diagnosis

When the patient arrives at the doctor, he prescribes several laboratory tests based on the history gathered to identify osteochondrosis of the spine scholar from the spine:

1. X -Ray.This is a basic analysis that allows to evaluate the condition of the column in general terms.The radius -x will not show small and initial pathological changes, but will identify gross violations in bone tissue.If the figure shows signs of deleting vertebrates or darkening that do not correspond to normal size, other studies will be needed.
2. Computed tomography.This is a more advanced version of the X -Ray image, which allows you to see the smallest negative changes in bone tissue at the place of destruction, as the images are taken into a three -dimensional image.
3. Magnetic resonance tomography.This type of diagnosis is close to TC, but allows you to better consider soft tissues.Magnetic resonance imaging distinguishes between deteriorations of osteochondrosis, including hernias and protrusion.This type of diagnosis is sufficient to make an accurate diagnosis associated with the degenerative destruction of cheap tissue.
4. Conducting laboratory testsBased on biomaterial.Patients usually pass a general blood and urine test to control the basic indicators.This data allows you to superficially evaluate the patient's health.
5. Delivery of rheumatological samples.It is necessary to analyze to eliminate the rheumatoid nature of the pathology.

After inspection and conduct of the necessary tests, they make a final diagnosis.

Lumbar osteochondrosis treatment

In the treatment of pathology, an integrated approach is necessary.In 1-2 stages, conservative treatment is used with the use of medicines and physiotherapy during the recovery period.In the presence of 3 or 4 stages, if the patient has serious health deterioration indicators, surgical intervention will be required.

Pathological process drug treatment

In the case of damage to intervertebral discs, which emerged at the bottom of the Lombsacro department osteochondrosis, the use of an extensive list of medicines is shown.Some products are for symptomatic therapy, others to maintain health.

What the medicines prescribe:

1. Non -steroid anti -inflammatory drugs, analgesics.These medications greatly facilitate the patient's condition, especially in the acute period.Thanks to the pronounced effect of this type of medicine, it is possible to quickly calm pain in 1-2 days.Typically, patients are prescribed by selective action types as they damage the stomach mucosa membrane less.If indifferent anines cannot be used for more than 5 days, new generation medicines may be drunk for 2-3 weeks without fear of the consequences for a healthy gastrointestinal tract.In the presence of gastritis or ulcers, it is better to be safe and use gastroprotectors, proton pump inhibitors.
2. Muselaxantes- Drugs designed to eliminate painful muscle cramps.With osteochondrosis, there is an inadequate distribution of the load in the muscle corset associated with the weakness of the spine.As a result, some muscles are stuck, while others are in the hypotonus.To relieve painful spasm, muscle relaxation is prescribed.The duration of the treatment course and the scheme to take pills are selected by the assistant doctor.
3. Neurotropic vitamins.Such means include biamine vitamins, thiamine, cyanocobalamin and pyridoxine.With combined use B1, B6 and B12 at large doses, an analgesic effect occurs.The components positively affect nerve endings, nourishing them.These vitamins also participate in the construction of myelin shells that cover the nerves.Such medications are mainly prescribed for root syndrome, when it is necessary to relieve pain associated with nerve tweezers.For 2-3 weeks, injection agents are used and then change to oral forms of release.
4. Condropoprotectors.These medications have protective properties in relation to cartilage.If there are clear signals of cartilage degeneration, it is necessary to prescribe chondroprotectors with a long course.First, injected agents are used for 2-3 months and then move to tablets.The minimum use course is six months, with a range of several months.Current components in the composition are chondroitin sulfate and glucosamamine hydrochloride.Reception and dosage schemes are selected individually.
5. Calcium in combination with vitamin D3.These components serve to strengthen bone tissue.With age, due to bone wear, malnutrition and hormone deficiency, bone brittle is improved.The main building material is calcium.Without it, it is impossible to get a strong corset.For calcium preparations to be absorbed, it is necessary to take vitamin D3.To avoid the deficiency of cholecalciferol, it is necessary to regularly visit the sun in summer and winter to take additional vitamins.
6. Complex politicians.There are research data that constant intake of vitamins in the natural or synthetic form in physiological doses strengthens immunity during seasonal exacerbations of Sars, acute respiratory infections.People with lumbosacra spine diseases should carefully monitor their own health.
7. Blocking with anestheticThey are performed with a poorly cut pain syndrome using NSAIDs.Intra -articular injections of corticosteroids related to blockages are also effective.Such means help to soothe inflammation, which accelerates recovery in the acute period.Blocking performance should be performed by a highly qualified doctor with extensive experience in its use.It is advisable to block under ultrasound control so as not to enter other parts of the spine.Such treatment methods will help to quickly get rid of chronic pain.
8. Special ointments and gels.With the help of local funds, you can also successfully combat chronic pain of moderate and weak power.Different products are cold or heated, which usually allows the use of external medicines regularly.The use of medicines on the skin surface allows you to use them for a long time.These drugs are hardly absorbed by the systemic bloodstream, so they do not cause side effects.It is important to pay attention to the condition of the skin after applying the medicine.If there is a rash or itching, you will need to cancel the medicine.

Homeopathy or antispasmodic can also be prescribed.The diagram of taking medications is determined by the doctor individually.

Conservative methods of non -drama treatment

During the recovery period, physiotherapeutic procedures should be used to help improve blood circulation and normalize metabolic processes in affected tissues.Active recovery methods are used exclusively after interruption of acute pain.Support for conservative treatment softens the chronic course of the disease, which prevents exacerbation attacks.

Active rehabilitation methods include:

1. Conducting physical education from physical therapy.With the development of lumbar osteochondrosis, special exercises are required that improve the blood flow that levels post and support the muscles in tone.LFK should at first be performed under the supervision of an instructor, including safety rules.The exercises are performed in standing position, sitting or lying, depending on the complex designated by a specialist.If the patient is experienced, he can perform gymnastics at home.You should not ignore the useful part of the lesson - hot - Up and hitch.After a good and hot, the muscles are protected against tears and sprains.The last stage of execution accelerates the recovery processes in the muscles.With regular exercises, the muscles become strong because the back pain weakens.
2. Massage- A way to relax tense muscle tissue in contact conditions.An expert with the help of the hands improves blood flow in the muscles, which allows you to remove strong overvoltage.Massages in combination with muscle relaxants are more effective.These medications eliminate spasm and spasticity.Additional hands stimulation enhances the effect of the drug.It is recommended to visit the masseuse several times a year in courses for a constant effect.
3. Manual therapy.Using this exposure method, it is possible to release the muscles, not taking into account the degree of their resistance.Unlike massage, this method is violent, though effective.With neglected lumbar osteochondrosis, it is dangerous to use manual treatment practices if the expert is not experienced enough.Before you contact a manual therapist, you need to familiarize yourself with the contraindications list, including hypertension, heart disease and a hernia in the lower back.
4. Physiotherapeutic procedures.With the help of physical therapy, it is possible to improve local blood flow in the affected area without affecting other zones of the back.The essence of physiotherapy is simple: they combine methods and medicines for hardware treatment.Examples are electrophoresis.Under the influence of a laser of a certain frequency, medications are administered by the skin.More often, use group B injection vitamins. The device allows you to enter skin skin to medications without creating a systemic effect on the body.Magnetotherapy and shockwave therapy are also related to physical therapy methods.Irraded frequencies accelerate regeneration processes in joints and ligaments without causing side effects.

As part of complex treatment, acupuncture, hirudotherapy or homeopathy can be prescribed.

When surgical intervention is performed

Operations are necessary in advanced cases when the patient is tormented by serious neurological syndromes that emerged at the bottom of lumbar osteochondrosis.If the patient has a complication in the form of a hernia, the limbs began to be removed and the sensitivity of the gut or bladder has been disturbed, is urgently hospitalized.In this case, the operation is performed according to the indicators of life.

There are also relative indications for surgery.Examples are frequent dormancy of limbs, constant discomfort on the back, which is not subject to conservative treatment, partial loss of finger sensitivity.In this case, you can decide independently surgical treatment.

Lumbar osteochondrosis is a serious pathology that requires an integrated approach to therapy.In the early stages, medicines and physical therapy are prescribed.If the disease is progressing rapidly, surgery may be required.