Osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine: symptoms and treatment

What is the osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine? How to treat lumbar degenerative disc disease? And is it true that low back pain is not treated at all?Considering the statistics of morbidity, each year the number of cases has not diminished. Intervertebral osteochondrosis, amazed at how young body and older people. How to treat osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine and the main symptoms of lumbar osteochondrosis, will detail a neurologist or osteopath.

Low back pain is a fairly common ailment. Under the sickness means a change in shape of the vertebrae and reduction of elasticity of intervertebral discs due to malnutrition of cells. The lumbar spine suffers no accident. While in the lower part of the spine, the vertebrae assume a maximum load. When lifting weights, the entire force acting on the body, fraught with the depletion of the intervertebral space and it leads to compression of the nerve roots. Hence begin to show signs of lumbar osteochondrosis.

Reasons

Every disease, there are predisposing factors that influence the body negatively. Osteochondrosis of lumbar Department also has its causes. Doctors do not exclude the reason of the transmission of the disease at the genetic level. It is believed that if parents have problems with the malnutrition of the intervertebral discs, the greater the likelihood that children and this issue will not pass. One of the most popular reasons is hard physical labor. Lifting weights, most of the load on the lumbosacral spine.

Not less common cause of the disease is obesity. Extra weight accumulates in the body, pressure on the spine and causes pain. It seems that nothing serious will not result in the violation of posture, but it is also one of the reasons of wear of the intervertebral discs, which goes into low back pain. An important place is occupied by a back injury. More adversely affected by injuries or lifting heavy objects have a poorly trained athlete, or not accurately matched load.

The most common cause, worsening nutrition of cells drives – sedentary lifestyle.

To support the body in norm, people need reasonable load. Limited or completely absent motor activity leads to reduce the speed of blood circulation. As a result, the muscles of the back, not getting the right nutrients, weaken, and increases the load on the lumbar spine. Also, with age, the spine becomes less mobile, as in youth, the elasticity of the intervertebral discs is reduced, which leads to the disease.

Infectious disease, or an inflammatory process affecting the bones or joints, result in changes to the structure of the vertebrae. Congenital malformations of the skeleton, or abnormalities of the musculoskeletal system. Flat feet leads to the destruction of segments of the spine, due to the lack of attenuation in the extremities. The majority of the load falls not on the legs and lower back, which leads to deformation of the segments. A frequent cause of various diseases is stress. Therefore, lumbar degenerative disc disease and its symptoms are no exception. Strong nervous shock may give rise to a pinched nerve endings and cause pain. Often stress is the cause of osteoarthritis in women, they are more prone to emotions than men.

Symptoms

The initial stage of the disease, doctors diagnosed rare. Therefore, to identify the primary symptoms of degenerative disc disease of the lumbar, hard. The manifestation of the disease occurs gradually. As the main manifestation is pain in the lower back, there is a division of pain into 3 groups, which in turn, characterize the symptoms and signs of degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine.

• Lumbago – paroxysmal pain that occurs in response to sudden movement or heavy lifting. When trying to take a different position, the pain becoming even stronger, up to a shot.
• Lumbalgia – pain increases and becomes regular. Affected muscle fibers and the intervertebral cartilages. Lumbalgia is a consequence of lumbago.
• Lumboischalgia – pain, cold or heat in the lumbar region and lower extremities. They arise, in response to a pinched spinal roots.

The second most important, in the diagnosis of the disease symptom,is a limitation in motor activity due to pain. Trying to perform usual work, or exercise, the person experiences increased pain, which can affect the whole leg. Even while in a seated position, the patient experiences sensations of tingling from the waist to the feet.

Equally important, has a local lowering of the temperature and the change of color of the skin, it becomes dry and pale. Numbness, muscle weakness of lower limbs, talking about the progression of the disease. The most difficult phenomenon peculiar to the last degree of osteochondrosis of the lumbar part, is a violation of functions of organs of the pelvis. To constant debilitating pain, joined by incontinence of feces and urine, or on the contrary delay the launch.

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Diagnosing diseases there are four stages of osteoarthritis of the lumbar sacral spine. For each stage, typical symptoms of degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, joined by pain in the sacrum.

In the process of progression of the disease, osteochondrosis can go down to the final spine - the coccyx. The disease is called degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine. Appear sharp, paroxysmal pain in the coccyx. Most in this case, women suffer. Their anatomical structure of the body, and age-related changes, contribute to the development of intervertebral osteochondrosis. Low back pain in women is often complicated with other internal diseases.

The symptoms of lumbo-sacral degenerative disc disease have some difference from osteochondrosis of the lumbar. Symptoms are manifested in the disruption of the functioning of the organs of the pelvis, which hampers selection of the correct treatment, and diagnosis of the causes of the disease. Symptoms such as frequent urination, incontinence of urine and feces. If not properly diagnosis, complications arise.

The stage of the disease

Treatment of lumbar degenerative disc disease, is also different from the stage of the disease.

1. The first and initial stage of disease manifestation characterized by back pain, lumbago, muscle spasms, local swelling of the skin.
2. The second stage begins with lumbodynia. Pains become regular and more intense than in the initial stage. In the joints of the spine may not appear in the characteristic mobility, which increases the pain. The pain is felt during the sciatic nerve. Less frequently, can disrupt the function of internal organs.
3. The third stage is characterized by the appearance of intervertebral hernia. The spine is deformed, Curvature can be left or right, it is scoliosis, forward – lordosis, back – kyphosis. Due to this, a man plagued by the constant acute pain.
4. The fourth stage, the most difficult. Because of the constant severe pain, movement of the patient difficult. Before starting the treatment in time, the person may remain forever a cripple.

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Complications

The most common complication, it is a violation of functions of organs of the urogenital system. Along with incontinence of urine and feces, causes inflammation in the urine-genital organs and the rectum. With more severe lesions of the vertebrae, irritation in the direction of the sciatic nerve, and inflammation. Protrusion of the intervertebral disc, a very dangerous complication. Protrusion is the edge condition of the intervertebral disc that can lead to the following complication if you do not start timely treatment. It occurs due to undergoing degenerative changes in the spine.

The consequence of the protrusion is a herniated disc. Which is manifested by change of its shape, and rupture of the intervertebral disc.

Constant compression of the nerve roots of the spinal cord and inflammation leads to complications such as sciatica.

You may complete obstruction of the spinal canal. Due to the instability in the lumbo-sacral division of, men there, stagnant phenomena in the pelvis, which can lead to impotence. In women, it leads to inflammatory diseases of the uterus, ovaries and appendages. The part of the kidney is renal colic, which may not resolve until you begin to treat osteochondrosis of a loin. Paralysis of the lower limbs, which can attract the person to a wheelchair. Timely diagnosis and timely initiation of treatment, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, helps to prevent these complications and avoid disability.

• See also: Hyperlordosis of the lumbar spine

Treatment

We examine lumbar degenerative disc disease symptoms and treatment. In modern times, medicine is able to achieve recovery of a person suffering fromosteochondrosis. Treatment of degenerative disc disease of the lumbar sacral spine, lasts a long time. A sick man whose intervertebral osteochondrosis, appeared for the first time, will still wonder is it possible to cure osteochondrosis, and how to get rid of it forever?

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What to do? Treated whether the degenerative disc disease of the lower spine? First you need to completely rethink their way of life. To make certain conclusions. To move to the cherished goal of a cure, you need every day without interruption. Osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine, is crucial to a comprehensive treatment of the disease. Treatment of lumbo-sacral degenerative disc disease involves several techniques.

Conservative

Conservative treatment is based on massage techniques that with proper implementation, is able to relieve muscle spasm, and improve nutrition muscular fibres. Due to the improvement of the trophic, corset back muscles stronger. Posture adopt correct location, which determines the emergence of various problems with the spine. Physical therapy exercises for lumbar degenerative disc disease, very healthy, but exercise is necessary in the period of remission between exacerbations. Working out in the acute period of the disease can only aggravate the situation and harm your health.

Also of interest: nicotinic acid in osteochondrosis.

Manual therapy to treat conservative treatment. To fulfill her needs professional who are specially trained in this technique. Through this therapy, the spine can be returned to the desired position. Sometimes, this method is most effective. To carry out this procedure, it is necessary in the subacute period.

Diet, people suffering from obesity, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and maintaining a healthy diet, do not hurt anyone. And people with this disease will only benefit. As weight, this is one of the causes of low back pain. Equally effective way of treatment is physical therapy. Magnetic therapy, UHF capable of long-term treatment, improve the blood circulation of the affected area in the lumbar osteochondrosis. They also have vasodilator and analgesic effect.

Drug type of treatment. How to cure degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine with medication? What should be the treatment, all these issues are of great concern of the sick person. Treatment is divided into two types. In the first case, during the acute period of spinal degenerative disc disease, drugs aimed at eliminating pain and the inflammatory process. Tools that free and clamped the roots of the spinal nerves. These include muscle relaxants, corticosteroids, blockade, NSAIDs. For the second period between exacerbations, apply tools to help improve circulation, restore muscle and nerve fibers, damaged tissue in the body. With this purpose, vitamins, and drugs of vegetable and animal origin.

To improve blood circulation use cardiovascular medications, and warming and pain ointment.

Operational

Neurosurgeons held microsurgical and endoscopic operations on the spinal column. These methods are more common, and removal is resorted to in the case of ineffectiveness of other treatments. When not reached the effect of drug therapy, there are such complications as hernia, shown surgery to remove the affected disk.

Prevention of the disease

Prevention of osteochondrosis of lumbar segment is, in the exception of the risk factors that lead to this disease. Not to think about how to treat lumbar degenerative disc disease, to prevent its occurrence. The elimination of the causes is the main preventive measure.

• See also: prevention of low back pain.

Normalized physical activity, strengthening the muscles of the back, warning the maximum load on the lumbar, the prevention of development of diseases leading to low back pain, all of this is prevention to prevent the symptoms of lumbar sacral osteochondrosis. Adhering to these simple principles, you to preserve their health and prolong life. After all, not adhering to treatment and prevention, you can return to normal life ever