Juvenile osteochondrosis is a disease in which degenerative phenomena in the intervertebral discs of adolescents are observed. Most often, boys between the ages of 11 and 18 suffer. Many consider osteochondrosis a disease of the elderly, but in fact this disease also occurs in children during a period of rapid growth. Scientists have not yet fully clarified the causes of cartilage damage and changes in the discs between the vertebrae, but most believe that the whole thing is a sharp jump in the development of the skeleton.
In the article, we will consider how to recognize juvenile osteochondrosis at an early stage by symptoms, how to identify it and how to treat it. We also advise parents to pay special attention to the period of growing up of the child, as it is better to prevent the disease than to treat it.
Disease predisposition factors
Juvenile osteochondrosis of the spine has several identified factors of occurrence. Degeneration of the vertebral body can be of a hereditary nature, in which an abnormality of the formation of intervertebral discs is detected. The spine is often bent due to the inability of the muscular corset to hold the back skeleton in the correct position. This suggests that the child is not physically developed enough, has incorrect posture, spends a long time at the computer or desk, carries a heavy briefcase in his hand or a bag on one shoulder, does not play sports.
Deformation of the discs between the vertebrae can be associated with excessive physical exertion, often due to improper nutrition and, as a result, overweight young men. The pathological process may begin due to the injury.
It is very difficult to recognize the onset of juvenile osteochondrosis to parents, as often the child’s complaints about back or lower back pain are often not paid much attention at first. Only with the appearance of kyphosis or other curvature of the spine, adults lead their child to the doctor. We carefully consider the symptoms of the disease, by what signs it is possible to recognize the disease in order to start treatment on time.
Symptoms
Juvenile osteochondrosis can occur in any part of the spine. In this case, the symptoms will vary slightly. Consider the following criteria for determining the degeneration of the intervertebral discs of the cervical spine:
- Severe headaches turning into migraine.
- Dizziness and a state of fainting.
- The listed symptoms are accompanied by nausea and even vomiting.
A disease of the thoracic spine causes:
- Pain in the chest, which is often mistaken for pain in the heart or lungs.
- Difficulty breathing.
Juvenile osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine is accompanied by lumbalgia, that is, a sharp pain in the lower back, which a person experiences when lifting weights, coughing and even sneezing. Cervicalgia is also present, that is, pains radiating to the neck.
Discomfort is experienced more often after exercise. It is necessary to pay attention to the complaints of the child and not to ignore the presence of the first symptoms. Parents often associate pain with other diseases and self-medicate, which in this case can lead to pathological processes in the cartilage tissue and curvature of the spine - scoliosis or kyphosis.
Disease development
Spine disease proceeds in several stages, each of which has its own characteristics.
- The hidden stage. The child does not particularly complain about well-being, the back can ache after lifting weights or physical stress. Visually visible small stoop. You can check for the presence of pathology in a simple way - ask the young man to lean forward and touch his hands to the feet. If a child cannot do this, this is the first sign of osteochondrosis in adolescence.
- Early stage. It is characterized by even greater curvature of the spine, while nerve endings are pinched, which causes already noticeable pains in the lumbar region and between the shoulder blades, which are periodic in nature. Such symptoms can be seen between the ages of 15 and 20 years.
- If you do not start treatment in time, then at a late stage the appearance of intervertebral hernias is observed, calcium deposits appear in the ligaments, and cartilage elements of the joints are affected. Visually, in most cases, it is possible to consider the formation of a hump on the back, and occasionally scoliosis.
Diagnosis of the disease
If early signs appear, you should immediately consult a specialist. First of all, the doctor conducts a survey of the patient in order to collect information for the anamnesis. The following issues are being clarified:
- Do close relatives have similar problems?
- Has the patient suffered viral or bacterial infections?
- Were there injuries or bruises of the spine?
- How does a child eat?
- What are his physical activities?
Then the doctor conducts a visual examination of the back and chest. At the second stage of the examination, the following diagnostics are used:
- Roentgenography. This allows you to identify areas of damage to the disc and vertebrae, the degree of curvature of the spine, in contrast to the norm. If the causes of back pain are not clearly visible on the x-ray, the doctor may refer you for additional examinations.
- MRI or electroneuromyography.
- CT scan.
To detect the presence of an inflammatory process, you will have to take general blood and urine tests.
Juvenile osteochondrosis of the femoral head
Another unpleasant pathology that is caused by a violation of the blood supply, which causes bone tissue to die. Osteonecrosis affects the head of the femur, which makes the child aged 2 to 15 years pain when walking in the knee and hip joint, which can result in complete immobilization of the limb. Often leg pain and lameness occur after physical exertion, the child cannot explain the cause of the pain. The diagnosis can only be confirmed after a radioisotope scan of the femur.
How to treat the disease?
At the initial stage, the disease is treated with conservative methods - massages, physiotherapy, exercise therapy or manual therapy, may be prescribed to wear a special corset.
In severe and advanced cases, surgical intervention may be necessary. The need for an operation is determined by the attending physician after consultation with the surgeon in the event that there are sufficiently severe pains that do not disappear even with drugs, if the curvature of the spine is more than 75 degrees, when the blood circulation is disturbed by the disease and heart problems occur.
In the treatment of osteochondrosis of the femoral head, joints can be fixed with splints to avoid compression fracture of the head or its deformation.
Prevention
In order to prevent such a disease, great attention should be paid to the proper nutrition of a teenager, it should contain useful substances, minerals and other trace elements. In autumn and spring, it is desirable to support the body with additional vitamins.
Do not allow the appearance of excess weight, it puts a lot of pressure on the spine, gradually deforming it.
Let the child spend more time in active movement, take a break between lessons, give the student to fitness or to any sports section. Keep your posture while sitting at your desk and consult your doctor on time at the first sign of illness or back pain.
The code of juvenile osteochondrosis according to ICD-10 is M42.0
The World Health Organization has come up with a universal classification of all diseases, where each has its own serial number and code, consisting of several numbers and letter designations.
It is called the ICD-10, which stands for the International Classification of Diseases. No. 10 marks the 10th revision.
Knowing the code of the disease, a doctor in any country will understand what exactly you are sick with. For example, the ICD code for juvenile osteochondrosis is M42.0, where M42 means osteochondrosis, and 0 is the patient's age from 11 to 20 years.
Now you know that if the doctor put the code M42.0 on the medical card, it means that your child is diagnosed with osteochondrosis and you need to urgently take up treatment. After all, curvature of the spine threatens not only with external ugliness, while internal organs are displaced, breathing, blood circulation are disturbed, heart problems appear.
In the article we examined in detail the causes, the main symptoms, treatment methods and preventive actions for youthful osteochondrosis, in the ICD this pathology has the code M42.0. Take care of your children and consult a doctor in time for help.