How to treat lumbar protrusion: causes, symptoms, diagnosis and therapy

A serious disease that can significantly impair the quality of life is protrusion. It can develop in different parts of the spinal column. But most often, protrusion is diagnosed in the lumbar region. In this case, it is required to undergo a course of treatment, which will be prescribed by an experienced specialist. Self-medication will only exacerbate the problem. This can lead to disability. Therefore, when certain symptoms appear, you need to see a doctor. How to treat lumbar protrusion will be reviewed further below.

Pathology Description

A person who has encountered a problem of back pain is interested in which doctor treats protrusion of the lumbar spine, why such a disease has developed, and which therapy will be most effective. It is worth noting that protrusion is a type of dystrophic disturbance in the area of ​​intervertebral discs. This is an early stage of hernia. Treating a disease is not a complicated process. Very rarely there is a need for surgical intervention. But you can not start the pathology, since the consequences for the spine and overall health will be sad.

Often it is necessary to combine the treatment of osteochondrosis and protrusion of the lumbar spine. These diseases are related, since one of the causes of the presented pathology is trauma. With osteochondrosis, bone tissue is slowly destroyed. As a result, protrusion first appears, and then a hernia of the intervertebral disc.

Pathology can develop in any part of the spinal column. But in the lumbar region, pathology is diagnosed more often. During protrusion, the disc protrudes slightly at first. Then, as the pathology develops, it is exacerbated by breaking through the fibrous membrane of the disk. As a result, the pulpous nucleus emerges. This condition is called a hernia.

You need to understand that the function of the intervertebral disc is depreciation, so it consists of connective-cartilage tissue, as well as a glycoprotein. They separate the vertebrae from each other and provide their movement at all levels of the spinal column. Disks provide sufficient space for the nerves of the spinal cord, which exit the spinal canal and are responsible for the innervation of the limbs.

The gel-like core of the disk is enclosed in several different shells. The ring is the outer part of the disk. Protrusion in the development process goes through several stages. The fibrous ring weakens when damaged, the pulpous nucleus begins to press on it. This leads to the development of protrusion. Over time, this leads to irritation or compression of the nerve endings, which entails the occurrence of back pain and a host of other unpleasant symptoms.

Varieties

There are different types of protrusion. Depending on its type and stage of the disease, the doctor prescribes treatment. You need to consult a specialist without fail. Which doctor treats protrusion of the lumbar spine? You need to contact a neurologist. He makes a diagnosis and prescribes a set of therapeutic procedures. After that, other specialists are connected to the treatment process. This, for example, can be exercise therapy doctors, physiotherapists, chiropractors, etc.

The neurologist prescribes the treatment regimen after a comprehensive diagnosis. There are several main varieties of the presented pathology. They differ in the direction of protrusion of the disk:

• Circular. A flattened intervertebral disc protrudes uniformly in all directions simultaneously in the horizontal plane. The sizes of the extruded sections reach from 3 mm. Treatment of protrusion of the lumbar spine in this case is carried out comprehensively. In some cases, the size of the extruded area reaches 12 mm.
• Dorsal. The disc protrudes toward the spinal canal. Treatment of dorsal protrusion of the lumbar spine is carried out in accordance with the type of pathology. This is the common name for the group of pathologies, which include circular, paramedian and median protrusion.
• Central. The protrusion occurs towards the center of the ponytail.
• Diffuse. Has a chronic course. If this pathology is not treated in a timely manner, a person can become disabled, lose his ability to work, and engage in any type of activity related to physical activity.

The choice of treatment method is related to the type of disease. It is impossible to independently determine which type of pathology belongs to, which methods of exposure will be effective. With improper therapy, you can harm yourself, exacerbating the disease.

Reasons for the development of pathology

There are several factors that can cause hernia and protrusion of the lumbar. How to treat the disease, largely depends on the cause that caused the disease. Most often, protrusion development is associated with the following factors:

• Previously, the fibrous ring was weakened.
• Pressure on the disk increased suddenly, leading to rupture of the fibrous ring tissue.

All causes of disk damage can be divided into three large groups:

1. Permanent microtrauma. If permanent trauma occurs over a long period of time, this will damage the intervertebral disc. One of the possible reasons that lead to this effect is incorrect posture. Because of this, the spine is stressed. The stoop, inclined position of the body are not physiologically correct. Because of this, the fibrous ring weakens due to overstretching. Because of this, the integrity of the disk is violated. The core shifts. Because of this, the nerves and joints of the spine are subjected to increased pressure.
2. Sudden load. It occurs in a traumatic situation, for example, after a fall, shock. During a collision, an accident is a sudden load. In this case, the body tries to resist it. Because of this, the disc ruptures or stretches its tissues. Because of this, the intervertebral disc is injured. If you need to lift some weight, you should take a biomechanically correct body position. It is unacceptable at this moment to lean forward. Because of this, the back is stretched. Because of this, sudden trauma to the disc can also occur.
3. Genetic predisposition. Diseases of the spine can be caused by hereditary factors. The risk group includes people who have a large amount of elastin in their connective tissue. However, such causes of protrusion are rare. More often, external factors influence the development of pathology.

Considering how to treat protrusion of the lumbosacral, it should be noted that, first of all, you need to get rid of the root cause of the development of pathology. Common factors leading to such disorders are obesity (especially in the abdomen), poor physical fitness, and weak limbs. Also, protrusion often occurs due to work associated with staying in a stooped posture (sitting, standing) or with high physical exertion.

Symptoms

How to treat protrusion of the lumbar spine? It is necessary to conduct a comprehensive diagnosis. You need to see a doctor if certain symptoms appear. If human activity is associated with adverse factors, it is worthwhile to periodically diagnose to detect protrusion in the early stages.

The disease can develop asymptomatically for a long time. Only when the nerve endings are affected will the first symptoms appear. Due to their infringement, inflammation of the protrusion of the lumbar can occur. Treatment should be aimed at eliminating this negative manifestation.

Often painful sensations increase gradually. At first, the discomfort is very slight. A person can ignore him. But literally in a few days the pain will become more pronounced. They can no longer be ignored. Typical symptoms of protrusion are:

• pain in the lumbar spine;
• stiffness of movements in this part of the spinal column;
• numbness in the lower extremities, especially in the fingers and feet;
• a feeling of weakness in the muscles of the legs;
• sometimes there is a violation in the urinary system;
• mobility and elasticity of the leg muscles is reduced.

Most of the symptoms are neurological in nature, as there is an infringement of the roots of the spinal cord. This is only a small part of the symptoms that are characteristic of protrusion. They can be different, and in different patients the manifestations are different. The severity of pain depends on the degree of protrusion of the disk.

Without proper treatment, the pain will become even stronger. Therefore, if even slight pain in the spinal column occurs, a set of diagnostic procedures must be completed. Modern methods can accurately determine the cause of unpleasant symptoms, as well as determine the type of protrusion, associated pathologies.

Diagnosis and treatment approaches

How to treat lumbar spinal disc protrusion? To prescribe a treatment regimen, a neurologist must know all the nuances of the course of the disease. Otherwise, the therapy will not be effective enough.

One of the main diagnostic methods for the presented pathology today is magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography. The examination is carried out by a doctor, but this is not enough for a correct diagnosis. Modern equipment allows you to identify the disease at an early stage of development. In this case, the treatment of protrusion of the lumbar vertebrae will be not only effective, but also quite quick.

The most informative diagnostic method is MRI. When using radiography, it is difficult to identify abnormalities in the area of ​​intervertebral discs. CT is prescribed if the patient has certain contraindications to the MRI procedure. Using radiography, you can identify signs of complications of the pathology. This, for example, may be osteochondrosis. This disease is often accompanied by protrusion.

Using radiography, you can diagnose Schmorl's hernia, see osteophytes and secondary narrowing of the canal of the spinal column.

If the patient has no contraindications for MRI, it is better to start the diagnosis with him. This is a safe technique on the basis of which the doctor can make an accurate, correct diagnosis. The procedure is performed on a high floor apparatus.

In the vast majority of cases, patients are prescribed conservative treatment. Its main goals are to reduce the intensity of pain, eliminate the inflammatory process, strengthen the muscle corset, and prevent spasm of the spinal muscles. An integrated approach allows you to restore its functions.

Together with drug treatment, the doctor will definitely prescribe non-drug therapy. When the pain syndrome is stopped, massage, exercise therapy is prescribed.

Surgery for protrusion is extremely rare. This is possible only with the transformation of this pathology into a hernia. Only if protrusion caused serious damage to the spinal nerves, in which their work is disturbed, is surgery indicated.

Therapy

So, we treat protrusion of the lumbar disc. The doctor to whom the patient should consult will prescribe a set of procedures in accordance with the stage and form of the disease, will take into account related factors. The main treatment in this case is manual therapy. But it is worth remembering that it is not prescribed in the acute stage of the disease.

In combination with this technique, the patient is shown the use of medications. They relieve pain, inflammation and affect the tissues of the spinal column. If the lesion is minor, you can do without medication. In this case, the doctor will prescribe a course of manual therapy. Treatment of protrusion of the lumbar spine in this case also involves wearing a special corset.

In the acute period of the development of the disease, the patient is shown bed rest. In this case, analgesics and corticosteroids are prescribed. Fixing the vertebrae in one position will help reduce pain. So there will be no irritation of the receptors. The load on the spine in the acute period should be minimized. Manual therapy is contraindicated at this time. The acute period lasts 1-5 days.

Drugs for the treatment of protrusion of the lumbar can significantly reduce the intensity of pain.

At a time when pain can be stopped, the patient is prescribed a set of procedures aimed at strengthening the back muscles, restoring functionality in the affected section. For this, special therapeutic exercises are prescribed. It is necessary to follow all the doctor's recommendations. It is forbidden to lift weights, sit or stand for a long time.

The correct physical exercises that the patient will perform will prevent the development of relapse. An appropriate diet may also be prescribed. The patient will need to reconsider his lifestyle. All negative factors must be eliminated.

Reviews of doctors about drugs

Considering reviews of how to treat protrusion of the lumbar spine, it is worth noting that in most cases, doctors prescribe diclofenac-based drugs to reduce back pain. It relieves inflammation and eliminates soreness. You can not take the drug uncontrollably. The doctor prescribes the dosage and frequency of taking this drug.

Considering the methods of treating disc protrusion of the lumbar spine, it is worth saying that diclofenac-based products have a minimum number of contraindications and side effects. Therefore, such drugs are prescribed to patients of different ages. Diclofenac also has antipyretic properties. However, it does not suppress the biological synthesis of cartilage. This is extremely important during the treatment of protrusion.

Doctors say that after taking pills and blockade based on diclofenac, a marked improvement in health was observed in patients. Swelling and swelling went away. Diclofenac-based products are available in the following forms:

• Tablets. They are coated and dissolve, entering the intestines. It is allowed to use for children whose weight has reached 25 kg.
• Sustained-release tablets. They are used in long-term therapy courses.
• Suppositories. These are candles that are used rectally for bedridden patients.
• Injection If the pills do not help, you can remove very strong pain in this way. Injections are done within 2-3 days no more. Then they switch to tablets.

Other drugs

Considering how to treat protrusion of the lumbar spine, it is necessary to note a number of other drugs that doctors often prescribe to patients. The list of such funds includes:

• Vitamins of group B. They restore the function of damaged nerve endings. Among the vitamin complexes of this type, “Neuromultivit” and “Milgamma” are most often chosen.
• Analgesics. Appointed if the pain is severe. Drugs in this group also allow you to relax the patient’s muscles, lower the temperature.
• Anti-inflammatory non-steroidal drugs. They improve the condition of tissue discs. This, for example, can be drugs “Ketanov”, “Movalis”, “Nise”, “Ibuprofen”, “Nimesil”, “Ortofen”.
• Muscle relaxants to relax clamped muscles. This, for example, "Baclofen", "Tizanidine."
• Swelling medications that reduce the burden on damaged tissue. It can be diuretics that relieve swelling.

Studying how to treat lumbar protrusion, it is worth noting that medications alone are not enough. Other methods of exposure to the patient’s body are also used.

Physiotherapy

How to treat lumbar protrusion? In addition to medicines, methods of manual therapy and physiotherapy are necessarily prescribed. Moreover, the procedures recommended by the doctor can be very different. But this is an indispensable element of the comprehensive treatment of protrusion. Physiotherapy may include the following effects on the body:

• Shock wave therapy. During the procedure, the doctor immediately sees the effect of the procedure, which allows you to adjust it if necessary. The purpose of applying this technique in protrusion is to remove compression from nerve endings. At the same time, back muscles are strengthened, posture improves. - , .
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During the procedures, the load rises gradually. The duration of the lesson should also increase. Often, you first need to perform exercises under the supervision of an exercise therapy specialist. Then gymnastics can be performed at home.