When diagnosed with spondylopathy, what is it, you need to know as accurately as possible. The presented disease is characterized by dystrophic and degenerative changes in the tissues of the musculoskeletal system. The main concomitant symptom is limited movement and pain. There is also a deterioration in the blood circulation process, since capillaries and nerve fibers are pinched.
Characteristic features of the disease
There is a generally accepted International Classification of Diseases that describes spondylopathy (ICD-10 assigns codes M45-M49 to it). The concept is unifying, and it includes various pathologies of the spine, represented by a holistic organ. This includes diseases of both inflammatory and non-inflammatory nature.
The main distinguishing feature that spondylopathy possesses is the formation of ossification on the vertebrae. They look like sharp spikes and appear from bone tissue. It is they that provoke a violation of the mobility of the body, the occurrence of painful sensations and pinching of the nerve endings.
In medicine, several types of disease are distinguished. They differ in the cause of the appearance and symptoms. Often in patients there is an increase in connective tissue on the lateral walls of the spine, or some parts are displaced to the sides, thereby violating the naturalness of the anatomical position.
Causes of pathology
Dealing with such a disorder as spondylopathy (what we are now figuring out), one cannot but touch upon the main causes of degenerative and dystrophic changes in tissues. First of all, injuries are distinguished. They can be sports, professional, domestic or the consequences of disasters.
Since hard tissues underwent mechanical damage, third-party bone growths form on the spine, and this negatively affects the work of the ligamentous apparatus. The next provoking factor is hypo- or vitamin deficiency, malnutrition, low intake of minerals in the body and associated hormonal diseases. This group of causes is attributed to metabolic disorders.
Often it is present in people with diabetes, obesity, or with malfunctioning of the thyroid / parathyroid gland, adrenal glands. Damage to healthy tissues almost always occurs if there has been a viral or infectious disease, since these representatives of the flora produce specific toxins, resulting in inflammatory spondylopathies.
One cannot exclude a hereditary predisposition as one of the causes of degenerative and degenerative changes in the tissues of the spine. This happens in a situation when someone already suffered from such a disease in the family, and then the damaged gene is passed from generation to generation. The last reasons are regular increased physical activity, as well as the natural aging of the body.
Types of spinal lesions
There is hormonal and dishormonal spondylopathy. Medicine knows several main types of spondylopathy:
- Pathology with a bright lesion of the intervertebral discs.
- As a complication after infectious and parasitic diseases.
- The consequence of osteoporosis.
- The result of natural aging of the body (senile type).
- The consequences of improper metabolism.
- Neurogenic species.
- Dysplastic appearance.
Depending on the type of pathological process, it will develop faster or slower, and also differ in symptoms. Dyshormonal spondylopathy is better known as spinal osteoporosis.
Lumbar affection
Classification, as well as varieties of the disease, is voluminous. In brief, we can consider what type of pathological process occurs more often and less often. Orthopedists claim that lumbar spondylopathy is mainly diagnosed. Most of the permissions occur in the vertebrae 5S, L1 and the disk, which is located between them.
The reasons are:
- high static loads;
- dystrophy of the muscles of the lumbar region due to insufficient physical activity;
- stoop while walking and sitting;
- incorrect setting of the feet;
- frequent injuries with a sharp lifting of weights.
The main clinical sign of pathology is a pronounced painful syndrome. Unpleasant sensations are diffuse and spread along the entire sciatic nerve. Against this background, it seems to a person that the limbs are numb, and goosebumps are crawling across the skin. After a long stay in one position, there is a stiffness of movements.
Thoracic affection
It is possible to suspect the presence of dystrophic or degenerative changes in oneself by the presence of specific symptoms. If one or a set of symptoms appears, then you need to seek medical help and undergo an examination. Thoracic spondylopathy is very rarely diagnosed.
In this area, the vertebrae do not move so actively, when compared with the lower back. Pathology is considered dangerous, since in patients there is a change in the attachment points of the costal arches, the chest is deformed. The main symptoms are:
- Inability to take a deep breath.
- Pain, feeling of friction and constriction during breathing.
- Discomfort on the projection of intercostal arches.
- Decreased lung volume.
- Feeling of pressure on the heart.
- Violation of the myocardial nutrition process.
Thoracic spondylopathy is a disease that can provoke damage to the pancreas, stomach, gall bladder, upper loop of the large intestine. But if you achieve a physiological change in posture, it will help correct the situation until the restoration of normal height between the vertebrae.
Signs of spondylopathy of the spine
First of all, the patient feels pain in the back. As a result of this, his movements become constrained, that is, mobility is limited. All muscles in close proximity to the affected area are tensed. If the disease has developed due to infection or parasites in the body, then there will be all the symptoms of intoxication (nausea, vomiting, constipation or diarrhea, excessive sweating, etc.).
Spondylopathies of the spine, formed as a result of improper metabolism, are accompanied by various deformations of the column, which does not exclude its complete or partial displacement. In the process of diagnosis, osteophytes are detected, a person becomes irritable, body weight fluctuates. If the senile form takes place, then kyphosis or scoliosis will develop.
Stage progression pathology
Trying to understand why spondylopathy develops, what it is and how it manifests itself, it is necessary to mention the stages of the progression of the pathological process. At the very beginning, the disease proceeds with minimally expressed symptoms, which people rarely pay attention to, attributing everything to typical fatigue.
However, already at this stage, the vertebrae become thinner, the bones become loose and thin. As tissues grow, deformations become more pronounced. In the third stage, there will already be a clear painful syndrome and limited movement. The fourth stage is characterized by subsidence and displacement of the vertebrae, and at the fifth, a fracture or pinching of the nerve process is not excluded.
Basic diagnostic methods
It is very important that spondylopathy is diagnosed in a timely manner. What it is, you can check with different medical professionals involved in the diagnostic process.
To confirm or deny the disease, they resort to the help of such methods:
- radiography;
- CT scan;
- Magnetic resonance imaging;
- bacteriological studies;
- blood analysis.
An x-ray shows structural changes in the spine and the degree of compaction of the discs. MRI diagnostics show the level of mineralization, and CT shows the state of muscles and nerve fibers. Blood tests show a high rate of erythrocyte sedimentation, increased viscosity, a tendency to form blood clots, in men and women, the release of testosterone and estradiol, respectively, increases.
Methods of treating a disease
When spondylopathy is confirmed after the examination, the treatment is developed by a leading specialist. If the cause of the pathology is hidden in the disturbed metabolic process, then drug therapy is carried out. It will be necessary to take medications that will help make up for the lack of vitamins and minerals.
Hormone treatment is prescribed only in the presence of endocrine diseases, and spondylopathy after injuries is almost always eliminated through surgical intervention. If the body has an infection, then a course of antibiotics is prescribed. Symptomatic therapy consists in taking hormonal and non-steroidal medications, as well as muscle relaxants.
The effectiveness of massage and exercise therapy
A good therapeutic result is shown by massage. Thanks to this procedure, you can strengthen the muscle fibers of the back. Patients after a full course note an improvement in general condition, the absence of pain. They restore the process of lymph and blood circulation in the body.
It is good to carry out massage in combination with physiotherapy. Most procedures that use electric current help eliminate swelling. Particular attention is given to exercise therapy or therapeutic exercises. All patients are advised to exercise in the morning. An experienced specialist should select the exercises so as not to harm himself.
Radon baths
If we consider the option of complex treatment, then radon baths should be present in it. Such manipulations are carried out in the conditions of spa treatment or in paid medical centers.
After the procedure, the patient feels relaxed, he has pain in his back, and also increases immunity. Do not take radon baths as a panacea. Moreover, they have contraindications, which must be familiarized with before the start of the course of treatment; only a doctor should prescribe them.
Manual exposure
The main rule for successful treatment of spondylopathy is to stop the destruction of bone structures, cartilage and tendons as quickly as possible. Manual therapy can help. It is worth remembering that degenerative-degenerative processes are accompanied by pain, so it is important to stop it.
The presented alternative treatment allows to achieve the following results:
- Compression pain syndrome passes (for this they resort to osteopathy, kinesitherapy or traction traction).
- The diffuse nutrition of the cartilaginous tissues of the intervertebral discs is restored (achieved through massage or reflexology).
- The muscular frame of the back is strengthened (therapeutic gymnastics and osteopathy helps).
In each clinical case, the therapeutic course should be selected individually for the patient. This allows you to take into account the features of the course of the disease and the body itself, the presence of concomitant pathologies.
Consequences and Prevention
If, when the characteristic symptoms of the disease appear, a person neglects visiting the hospital, then progressive spondylopathy will lead to a decrease in mobility. Subsequently, the blood circulation process is disrupted, compression of the nerve endings and capillaries will occur.
Unfortunately, it is impossible to get rid of senile spondylopathy, because the body is in the process of natural aging. However, the destruction of bone structures can be slowed. To do this, it is recommended to do gymnastics, do morning exercises, and also take multivitamin and mineral complexes prescribed by your doctor.
As for prevention, experts recommend avoiding frequent and excessive physical exertion. If you have previously had injuries, you need to control the healing process. It is important to always monitor the level of sugar and hormones in the blood. If you suspect spondylopathy, you must first seek the advice of a therapist. After examination by a doctor, subsequent treatment is developed in conjunction with an orthopedic surgeon.