Effective methods for treating osteochondrosis at home

As is known, osteochondrosis is a chronic pathology caused by degenerative changes in the structure of the spine. Unfortunately, 8 out of 10 people among the adult population suffer from osteochondrosis.

The pathology can begin in youth (20-25 years), gradually becoming complicated by new manifestations. In general, lumbar, thoracic and cervical osteochondrosis are distinguished.

Symptoms of the disease

Osteochondrotic lesions of the cervical spine are characterized by:

• Forcing pain in the neck and back of the head (cervicalgia);
• If the vertebral artery is damaged, the activity of the nerve centers responsible for the normalization of pressure indicators is disrupted, so hypertension is often a pathology accompanying osteochondrosis;
• During the development of cervical osteochondrosis, compression of the spinal artery occurs, which causes the appearance of symptoms such as extraneous sounds in the ears, dizziness and visual disturbances, paroxysmal painful headaches;
• Heart pain radiating to the shoulder blade and neck, similar to the pain of angina.

Lumbar osteochondrosis is characterized by symptoms:

• Severe pain resulting from compression of the spinal nerve roots, as well as the venous and arterial pathways that supply the spinal cord;
• When the lower lumbar roots are affected, the disease is accompanied by shooting pain along the outside of the legs, which results in a decrease in sensitivity in this area;
• Often, lumbar osteochondrosis is manifested by shooting pains running from the lower back to the legs, later this symptom is replaced by a decrease in sensitivity of the lower extremities;
• With the development of complications in the form of intervertebral hernia, manifestations such as leg weakness, lower back pain, decreased muscle tone and sensitivity of the legs as well as weakness of the leg muscles (paresis) occur.

Manifestations of thoracic osteochondrosis:

• With upper lesions, pain is observed in the abdomen, chest, shoulder and scapula;
• Lower lesions are accompanied by a decrease in the sensitivity of the lower thoracic vertebrae, accompanied by dysfunction of the pelvic organs. When moving or sneezing, the pain increases;
• In rare cases, thoracic osteochondrosis causes compression of the spine, characterized by local girdle pain radiating to the intercostal space, abdomen, groin or lower extremities, weakness and numbness of the legsand disturbances in the activity of the pelvic organs.

Treatment options

In the treatment of osteochondrosis, a whole range of therapeutic techniques is used:

1. Drug therapy;
2. Physiotherapy (massage procedures, physiotherapy, etc. );
3. Diet therapy;
4. Corrective therapy;
5. Ethnosciences;
6. Surgery.

How to treat cervical, thoracic and lumbar osteochondrosis at home

Each of the methods of anti-osteochondrosis therapy is aimed at relieving pain with its subsequent elimination, normalizing the course of spinal structural processes and restoring the root activity of the spine.

Drug therapy

Drug treatment of osteochondrosis is based on several areas:

1. Symptomatic treatment aims to eliminate pain and involves taking anti-inflammatory drugs. In addition to anti-inflammatory drugs, patients are prescribed muscle relaxants from the group of muscle relaxants;
2. Treatment aimed at normalizing blood circulation involves the use of vasodilators;
3. Cartilage tissue repair therapy is based on the use of chondroprotective drugs;
4. Vitamin therapy is based on taking vitamin complexes;
5. Treatment with antidepressants is used to relieve anxiety and depressive states, which often occur in patients against the background of limited movements and pain of osteochondrosis origin.
6. Therapy with herbal preparations often helps to significantly alleviate the condition of patients, as these drugs restore the body's immune defense, sleep and strength and prevent depression.

Physiotherapeutic activities

Physiotherapeutic measures which:

• Helps eliminate pain syndrome;
• Increase the range of motor skills;
• Improve and facilitate the course of immune processes;
• Normalize blood circulation;
• Normalize metabolic processes;
• Plan a reduction in the therapeutic dosage of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics.

Physiotherapy has many varieties. In anti-osteochondrosis treatment, the following are most often used:

1. Electrotherapy involves carrying out procedures associated with the influence of electric current, such as electrophoresis, galvanization, electrosleep, darsonvalization and others using special devices;
2. Shock wave therapy is carried out using devices that convert an electrical impulse into an ultrasound wave, which, acting on the spine affected by osteochondrosis, accelerates the healing of damaged bone and cartilage tissues, eliminates pain andswelling;
3. Balneotherapy involves the use of mineral waters and muds, after exposure to which blood supply improves, pain is relieved and material metabolism is normalized;
4. Magnetotherapy - this device is based on the use of a constant magnetic field created by special inductors placed on the affected spinal areas;
5. Laser therapy is based on the use of special lasers, which, acting on affected tissues, contribute to their restoration.

All physiotherapeutic methods provide symptomatic treatment of osteochondrosis, relieve inflammation and pain, reduce the duration of treatment and the dosage of medications taken.

Diet

Since anti-osteochondrosis treatment is complex, it requires a rationally balanced diet.

For patients with this disease, it is extremely important to limit the intake of fluids, salt and simple carbohydrates. They must be removed from the diet:

• Alcohol;
• Drinks like cocoa, coffee and strong tea;
• Pickles and spicy dishes;
• Products too rich in extractive substances (mushrooms, fatty fish, poultry, meat, etc. ).

Since osteochondrosis causes the destruction of intervertebral cartilage, its restoration requires animal proteins, rich in dairy products, lean fish or meat.

Particularly useful for these patients is jellied meat or broth prepared from boiled bones of beef or pork legs. This broth is rich in collagens, which provide additional strength to bone and cartilage tissues.

Exercises to improve health

Therapeutic exercises play an equally important role in the treatment of osteochondrosis; in addition, they are considered the most effective method to combat the destruction of bone and cartilage cells, help strengthen muscle and joint tissues, provide mobility of the spine and help in the restoration of damaged tissues.

When performing physiotherapy exercises, several simple conditions must be observed:

1. Movements should not cause severe attacks of pain or discomfort; if such an effect occurs, it is necessary to discuss the situation with a doctor;
2. You cannot perform exercises during periods of exacerbation of the disease, otherwise pain symptoms may increase or complications may develop;
3. You should perform the exercises smoothly, avoiding sudden movements.

The necessary set of exercises is selected by the doctor depending on the patient's condition and the degree of development of osteochondrosis.

Massage

Massage procedures help improve blood circulation and have a relaxing effect on the patient's muscles. The massage begins with light strokes, then moves on to rubbing and kneading. The massage can be performed with the hands or using special objects like jars.

Cupping massage for osteochondrosis helps relieve muscle tension and activate metabolic processes in affected tissues through improvement of blood and lymph flow. Acupressure, which involves influencing active points in the spine, has no less therapeutic effect.

ethnoscience

Traditional medicine, which offers many recipes for various frictions and compresses, can also help in the treatment of osteochondrosis. Thanks to folk remedies that increase blood flow, it is possible to relieve pain and relax muscles.

These tools are based on:

• Essential oils (fir, etc. );
• Rendered pork lard;
• Camphor alcohol;
• Badger fat;
• Dear;
• Bee and snake poison;
• Roots and medicinal herbs such as aloe, birch or horseradish leaves, garlic, ginger, red pepper.

They are combined with alcohol, iodine and turpentine, which causes a local irritant effect. Mustard baths (200 grams of powder per water bath) are excellent for relieving sudden acute pain.

Orthopedic accessories

A good addition to home treatment of osteochondrosis would be the use of orthopedic accessories that provide complete relaxation of the spine during a night's rest.

Therefore, during sleep you should adopt a correct and comfortable body position.

High-quality orthopedic mattresses and pillows can help with this. Thanks to the use of such devices, the spine will be completely relaxed at night, which will eliminate symptoms and improve the patient's condition.

Osteochondrosis can be treated independently, the main thing is to observe the regularity, consistency, complexity of procedures and coordinate all actions with a specialist.