Cervical osteochondrosis refers to degenerative disorders of the intervertebral discs. The disease is accompanied by a complex of different symptoms. The clinical picture develops as the disease progresses - each stage corresponds to certain symptoms and intensity of manifestations.
Symptoms according to the degree (stages) of cervical osteochondrosis
As osteochondrosis is a progressive disease, the clinical picture develops gradually. This refers to the number of symptoms of the disease and the intensity of its manifestation. In general, there are 4 stages of the disease.
Stage OneOsteochondrosis of the cervical spine is the beginning. The changes occur mainly at the biochemical level. This stage of the disease is accompanied by mild symptoms or asymptomatic, so it is called pre-clinical. It has the following features:
- There is discomfort in the neck, it can spread to the arms and shoulders, sometimes the sensations are painful;
- headache;
- motor activity in the cervical spine is somewhat limited;
- has rapid visual disturbances;
- reduces the sensitivity of the skin of the collar area;
- Symptoms increase with nodding.
TheThe early stages of osteochondrosis are not considered by many patients. The symptoms of the disease are often related to age, fatigue and stress.
second stage of cervical osteochondrosisis characterized by the development of protrusions. This stage involves dehydration of the intervertebral disc, a decrease in its elasticity and height, and the formation of cracks in the ring fibrosis. In this case, the disc exits the intervertebral canal.
This stage of the disease is characterized by the following symptoms:
- Severe pain, tingling in the neck is possible;
- Painful sensations fire in nature, spreading under the scapula;
- pain increases with prolonged holding of the head in one position;
- significant loss of sensitivity in the skin of the shoulder and arm;
- frequent and prolonged headaches;
- visual disturbances, flying in the eyes;
- ear sound, ringing;
- muscle weakness in the upper extremities;
- Decreased clarity of tendon reflexes;
- insomnia, less often other sleep disorders;
- There is a lump in the throat, it is difficult to swallow.
TheThe second stage of cervical osteochondrosis manifests itself very clearly, at which stage many patients consult a doctor. In this case, conservative treatment is sufficient.
third stage of the diseaseis characterized by destruction of the ring fibrosis and the formation of an intervertebral hernia. At this stage, the spine is deformed, the vertebrae are displaced, subluxations and dislocations develop against the background of poor fixation.
This stage of the disease is characterized by the following symptoms:
- severe sharp pain that can spread to the heart;
- partial or complete impairment of skin sensitivity behind the head, shoulders, arms;
- paresis, paralysis of the upper extremities;
- almost complete absence of tendon reflexes.
The last,fourth stageosteochondrosis involves the replacement of intervertebral disc tissue with scar tissue. Correction of the disease at this stage often occurs, but pathological changes spread to other structures of the spine, so the clinical signs of different stages of osteochondrosis can be observed simultaneously.
General symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
The clinical presentation of cervical osteochondrosis is very diverse. This is due to impaired blood flow, the involvement of the peripheral nervous system in the pathological process, possible compression and impaired spinal cord integrity. Against this background, different symptoms develop, but there are several common symptoms of the disease.
Pain
This symptom is the main symptom of cervical osteochondrosis. The main localization of painful sensations is the neck. Headache and facial pain are also observed. Painful sensations can radiate to different parts of the body.
This feature of the pathology depends on the affected area:
- If the C4-C5 disc is affected, the pain spreads to the outer surface of the shoulder and the medial part of the scapula;
- With C5-C6 disc lesion, painful sensations spread to the lateral surface of the forearm, hand, thumb, and index finger;
- C6-C7 pathology is accompanied by painful sensations extending to the index and middle fingers along the back of the shoulder and wrist;
- If the C7-Th1 disc is involved, the pain spreads along the inner surface of the forearm and extends to the ring finger and little finger.
Decreased sensitivity and reflexes
These symptoms occur against the background of impaired innervation of nerve roots. There may be no painful feelings. The characteristics of reduced sensitivity and reflexes depend on the localization of pathological changes:
- Sensitivity decreases in the upper part of the outer shoulder when the C4-C5 disc is affected. There is a decrease in the reflex from the biceps muscle.
- Osteochondrosis of the C5-C6 disc is accompanied by a decrease in sensitivity on the lateral surface of the wrist, hand, thumb and index finger. The reflex from the biceps muscle is also reduced.
- C6-C7 disc pathology reduces the sensitivity of the index and middle fingers, the back of the hand and arm. There is a decrease in the reflex from the triceps muscle.
- Defeat of the C7-Th1 disc is accompanied by a decrease in the sensitivity of the ring finger, little finger, inner surface of the hand and wrist. Not affected by reflexes.
Dizziness
This symptom often develops in the early stages of cervical osteochondrosis and is one of the first manifestations of the disease. Dizziness occurs with a decrease in the amount of oxygen supplied to the semicircular canals of the inner ear. They are located in the brain and provide balance. Simultaneous dizziness may be accompanied by horizontal or vertical oscillations of the pupils.
Nausea
With osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, blood flow from the cerebral vessels is disturbed. This causes nausea and bloating. These symptoms often occur when dizziness and bending, and sometimes during normal walking. Symptoms may increase and may include persistent vomiting.
The following results are possible against the background of such signs:
- decreased appetite;
- weight loss;
- malnutrition, food dystrophy.
lack of air
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can irritate the phrenic nerve, which regulates the depth and frequency of breathing. With the defeat of this nerve, a person has difficulty breathing and is unable to breathe fully. Against this background there is a lack of oxygen, which is fraught with shortness of breath and even suffocation.
There is a risk of respiratory arrest during sleep, especially if the head is restless. These attacks are usually accompanied by snoring. In the absence of fresh air, hypoxia develops with the following symptoms:
- fatigue even after sleep;
- weakness;
- weakness;
- Attention and memory impairment.
Hearing loss, noise and ringing in the ears
Cervical osteochondrosis suffers from the vestibular apparatus against the background of circulatory disorders. This causes dysfunction of the inner ear and causes cochlear syndrome, also called cochlear. There are the following symptoms:
- tinnitus;
- call;
- general hearing loss.
A distinctive feature of cervical osteochondrosis is the formation of tinnitus on the background of prolonged stay in a forced position.
Syncope
This symptom occurs against the background of blood flow disorders caused by cervical osteochondrosis. Normally, blood is constantly moving along the blood vessels of the brain. With osteochondrosis, the bone processes in the vertebrae are deformed and the nerve endings are irritated. This causes an open spasm of the arteries, in which blood flow is temporarily stopped and the person suddenly loses consciousness. Fainting usually does not last more than 2-3 minutes.
Pharyngeal symptoms
This manifestation of cervical osteochondrosis includes all pathological symptoms:
- tickle;
- foreign body sensation;
- Difficulty swallowing
- dry throat;
- itching sensations.
Pharyngeal symptoms develop against the background of disorders of the nervous system, the source of which is the spinal cord. Apparently, a differential diagnosis is necessary, because a similar clinical picture is characteristic of the inflammatory process and tumors.
visual impairment
In cervical osteochondrosis, such a disease often occurs against the background of low blood pressure or atherosclerosis of the cerebral arteries. Visual impairment can manifest itself as follows:
- a veil in front of the eyes, objects appear as if in a fog;
- visual acuity decreases;
- Dots flash in front of eyes;
- loses focus on certain topics.
A distinctive feature of visual impairment in the background of cervical osteochondrosis is the fact that the eyes are not affected by special gymnastics or the use of glasses.
Temperature change
With cervical osteochondrosis, such a deviation occurs locally. This means hyperemia in the pathological area, ie a local increase in skin temperature.
Syndromes due to cervical osteochondrosis
The symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are very common and accompany many other diseases of various organs and systems of the body. To facilitate diagnosis, clinical signs are divided into groups called syndromes:
- Cervical. This syndrome is reflexive and includes neck pain. This may indicate damage to the spine or muscles in the area.
- Cervicocranialgia. This syndrome is also a reflex. It means painful sensations in the cervical-occipital region and occurs against the background of trauma, inflammation or degenerative changes.
- Cervicobrachialgia. This reflex syndrome includes neck pain that spreads to the arm. Occurs against the background of compression of the cervical spine nerve roots. With osteochondrosis, this syndrome is accompanied by muscular-tonic, vegetative-vascular or neurodynstrophic manifestations.
- Radicular syndrome. It is also called cervical radiculitis. There is a creepy feeling in the affected area, tingling in the fingers and forearms, and a slight swelling (depending on the location of the lesion) that spreads to some fingers.
- Irritant reflex syndrome. It means cervicocranialgia. Painful sensations are sharp and burning, can spread to the shoulders and chest. Symptoms increase with a change in head position, a sharp turn, sneezing.
- Vertebral artery syndrome. This symptom complex includes headache, restlessness in certain movements, imbalance, hearing and visual acuity, weakness, nausea, and loss of consciousness. The headache may be throbbing, constant, or paroxysmal.
- Heart syndrome. The clinical picture is similar to angina pectoris. Long-term pain develops suddenly, intensified against the background of sharp movements of the neck, cough, sneezing. It does not pass with heart medication and the electrocardiogram does not show impaired blood flow to the heart muscle. Tachycardia and extrasystole may be added to the clinical picture.
- Vegetative-dystonic syndrome. Occurs during subluxation with displacement of the C1 vertebra. This syndrome generally includes neurological symptoms of impaired cerebral blood flow - muscle spasms, decreased intracranial pressure, dizziness, decreased visual acuity, fainting, headache, nausea.
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is accompanied by various symptoms. The characteristics and intensity of clinical manifestations depend mainly on the stage of the disease, which involves certain pathological changes. Some of the symptoms of the disease are combined with syndromes - such symptom groups facilitate diagnosis.