Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is much less common than that of the cervical or lumbar spine. This is because the vertebrae in the chest area are much more tightly connected and movement in the joints is minimal. In addition, this part of the spine is muscularly protected and fixed more rigidly by the ribs.
Nevertheless, osteochondrosis of the chest region is one such disease, the treatment of which should not be postponed until later, as it can lead to rather undesirable consequences.
Causes of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
The main reason is dystrophic-degenerative changes in the intervertebral discs. This could be due to the presence of scoliosis or the following factors:
- Inheritance
- Eating and metabolic disorders
- Obesity
- Increased physical activity
- Physical inactivity, prolonged stay in one position
- Spinal injury
- nervousness
- Advanced age
- smoking
- Hypothermia
All of these factors affect the nutrition of the intervertebral discs, leading to metabolic disorders and the onset of degenerative transformations in them.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis of the chest region
A similar pathology is noticeable by painful sensations.
There are two kinds:
- Dorsago or lumbago in the chest. This is a sudden, sharp and severe pain that occurs in the spine when standing up after being in the same position for a long time, usually long work at a table in a sloping posture. The pain can already be felt when breathing, the muscles are tense, the movements in the chest and adjacent spine are restricted.
- Dorsalgia (back pain). In this case, the pain is not so pronounced, at rest it causes only mild discomfort. But if you try to bend over or take a deep breath, it gets stronger. In this state, the mobility of the spine decreases and the back muscles are tense.
- With the defeat of the first root, there is a decrease in sensitivity and pain in the upper thoracic vertebrae, which spreads to the suprascapular region up to the elbow joint.
- With compression of 2-6 roots, the pain is concentrated in the ribs and spreads from the spine to the interscapular and axillary areas.
- The compression of the 7th and 8th roots leads to tension in the muscles of this zone and the appearance of painful sensations of a belt-like nature from the rib-vertebral joints to the epigastric region.
- The defeat of roots 9 and 10 causes pain in the lower thoracic vertebrae, which spreads to the navel 11 and 12 - below the navel.
Signs of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine may be pain between the ribs. This is due to compression of the nerve roots, which leads to decreased sensitivity and limited mobility.
Visceral manifestations of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
Radicular syndromes are often accompanied by complaints about internal organs:
- Defeat of the upper roots of the breast may be accompanied by pain in the esophagus and throat, there is a feeling that a foreign body appears there. These symptoms can be intermittent or constant, and when you press on the area of the spine that has osteochondrosis, it becomes stronger.
- If the middle roots of the breast are affected, discomfort and a sensation of pain in the stomach occur, aggravated by lying for a long time on a hard surface with the face upwards and by movement in the corresponding part of the spine.
- If the pathological changes below have occurred, discomfort occurs in the duodenum, which is aggravated when coughing or sneezing, rotating the trunk or sitting for long periods of time.
Osteochondrosis of the chest region can cause gastric disorder. In this case there is:
- Nausea
- heartburn
- diarrhea
- constipation
- Left hypochondrial pain
- flatulence
- Possible vomiting
In connection with the disruption of the normal functioning of the duodenum, the following may occur:
- Pain in the upper abdomen and back
- Eructation
- Nausea
- Heaviness in the right hypochondrium
- Sometimes gas and vomiting
Very often, osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine can lead to the symptoms characteristic of heart diseases:
- Burning chest on the left
- Cutting, burning, pressing pain of the heart
- Tightness in the throat
Osteochondrosis can cause laryngeal spasm, which can make breathing difficult and wheezing when attacked, and coughing may occur. In this case, it is very important to determine whether such symptoms are not due to pulmonary pathology.
Treatment of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
Due to the fact that a variety of pathologies can be masked under this disease, you need to be examined by a neurologist who, after the examination, will give instructions for the following studies:
- roentgen
- CT (computed tomography)
- MRI
Usually this is enough to identify the pathology and make a diagnosis.
When treating osteochondrosis, the main goals are:
- relieve pain
- Restore the functions of the spinal roots
- Slow down dystrophic changes in the intervertebral discs
The following methods are very effective for this:
- Vacuum and laser therapy
- acupuncture
- Whirlpools
- Electrophoresis
- Inductometry
- massage
- Traction (traction)
- Magneto- and pharmacopuncture
- Exercise therapy
Drug therapy for osteochondrosis:
- NSAIDs
- Chondroprotectors
- Anoint
- Muscle relaxants, the action of which is aimed at relieving muscle spasms
If the listed methods did not give a positive result, then treatment for osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is carried out surgically.
The operation consists of two phases:
- Elimination of the cause of pain (decompression).
- Discectomy - removal of a disc or just part of it.
- Foraminotomy - widening the root canal to prevent compression of the nerve by a disc or bone spur.
- Facetectomy - Removal of the facet joints, which are located between the processes of the vertebrae of the joints, to remove the entrapment of the nerve fibers.
- Laminectomy - the back of the vertebra is removed, which compresses the spinal cord during the deformation.
- Laminotomy - It differs from the previous operation in the removal of a fragment of the back of the vertebra.
- Corpectomy - removal of a vertebra and adjacent intervertebral discs with the insertion of a bone implant.
- Stabilization of the spine. When a vertebra or intervertebral disc is removed, the supporting structure of the human body is disrupted, which can lead to the occurrence of serious neurological diseases. To avoid negative consequences, it is necessary to fix the vertebrae. Most often, the method of spinal fusion (spinal fusion) is used, which creates conditions for the fusion of the bones of the spine. The resulting cavities are filled with grafts from the patient's or donor's bones as well as special biological substances that stimulate the restoration of the bone tissue.
Treatment of osteochondrosis using alternative methods
In this case, it should be about pain relief, which can only be used in conjunction with a full-fledged treatment. To do this, various herbs are used that have anti-inflammatory, local anesthetic, and calming properties.
To consolidate the positive result of treatment, it is necessary to eat properly, avoid stressful situations and appropriate physical activity. In this case, osteochondrosis will bother you much less often.