Osteochondrosis rarely develops in the thoracic region of the spine - the intervertebral discs in it are smaller and thinner than in the neck or lumbar region.The thoracic region is less mobile, the main load falls on the ribs and sternum.
Unlike cervical and lumbar osteochondrosis, the symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis differ only in the location of the pain.The nature and duration of pain are similar.With prolapse in the thoracic region, the spinal cord is not affected.Read this and more below.
Stages of pathology
Osteochondrosis usually progresses over time.According to the severity of the manifestation, the pathology is divided into 4 stages.
Preclinical
Minimal distortions are visible in the spine.A mild pain syndrome may be observed, the back muscles become tense.Thoracic pain - chest pain - can develop, but this is a rare occurrence.
Discogenic radiculitis
There is a change in the structure of the intervertebral discs.Moderate pain may appear in the affected part of the spine.The patient is able to work.But his level of muscular endurance decreases.
Vascular-radicular
At this stage, the fibrous ring is completely destroyed.A disc herniation occurs and the process of deformation of the annulus fibrosus continues, which leads to its rupture.The nucleus pulposus then prolapses into the space beneath the ligaments.Disc herniation occurs.The process affects the tissues located near the disc, the activity of blood vessels, muscles, nerves and ligaments is disturbed.The disease becomes chronic.
Changing the shape of the bone structure
The vertebra hardens, the surface becomes ribbed and uneven.Muscles begin to contract on their own, which leads to limited mobility of the entire spine or a certain vertebra.The nerves extending from the spinal cord are compressed.This causes the impulses from the brain to the tissues and organs of the body to deteriorate.
Mobility of the spine as a whole is preserved, but individual vertebrae become fragile and can easily collapse.If the disease is not treated, it goes to the fourth stage.
Intervertebral disc tissue regeneration and replacement with scar tissue
A damaged intervertebral disc cannot perform its functions well, which leads to the convergence of adjacent vertebral bodies.This causes disorders in the intervertebral joints called spondyloarthrosis.In this case, twisting or sliding of the vertebra relative to the neighboring ones may occur.
The body activates compensatory mechanisms.To relieve the load on the damaged disc, the vertebra flattens and increases in width.Thus, its area increases.And the tissue of the collapsed fibrous ring can be replaced by bone.
Sometimes this relieves pain, but as the vertebrae grow, they narrow the spinal openings even more - the nerve is compressed.
Symptoms of the disease
Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis are often caused by the following factors:
- age of the patient;
- spinal cord injury;
- stage of disease development;
- The patient's condition is remission or exacerbation of the disease.
Symptoms may also include:
- radiculopathy - painful damage to the nerve endings of the spinal cord;
- abdominal syndrome;
- cardiac syndrome, changes in the heart muscle - characterized by severe pain and not sensitive to the effect of nitroglycerin;
- pulmonary syndrome: congestion and hypoxia occur in the lungs;
- paresthesia - feeling of "goose bumps" throughout the body;
- pain in the area of a compressed nerve;
- decreased sensitivity to temperature changes and touch;
- disorders of the motor function of the spine.
The patient's body temperature does not increase.It serves as a sign that allows you to distinguish pathology.
Degrees of disease
Lumbago
It is a sharp pain that hits the body.It occurs when lifting heavy objects and during other physical activity - the pain is similar to an electric shock.
From a morphological point of view, when the load is too high, an unexpected rupture of the intervertebral disc capsule occurs.Such a traumatic injury causes irritation of the nerves - pain occurs.
The muscles are tense and this is clearly expressed.Lumbar lordosis is smoothed.Thus, the load is redistributed and the intervertebral disc is further compressed, which causes swelling, which increases the pain.
When the pathology is concentrated in the neck area, cervicalgia appears - it manifests itself as pain when turning the head and palpating the neck muscles.During an exacerbation, cervicocranialgia is often observed, which is manifested by a person having a severe headache at the back of the head.Tinnitus, dizziness, a feeling of spots in your eyes, your teeth may hurt.
Dizziness
It appears as a result of the narrowing of the spinal canal.The intervertebral disc bulges and compresses the blood vessels.The brain does not receive the necessary amount of blood.You may experience a severe headache, numbness in your arms, and pain in your shoulders.
Breathing becomes difficult, the brain does not get enough oxygen.This causes stabbing pains in the heart area.
Intervertebral hernia
At this stage of development, the picture looks quite serious - the spinal canal and intervertebral spaces are very narrow.As a result, a hernia may appear - a dangerous defect.It is often necessary to resort to surgical intervention at this stage of the disease.
Treatment of third-degree osteochondrosis depends on compressing the roots.It is possible to use the same techniques as for the second degree.However, if the pain does not go away within fifteen days and there are signs of prolapse (vertebral prolapse), surgical intervention is required.
Growths in the vertebrae
As a rule, at this stage of the disease, the manifestations of hernia disappear, the symptoms of the disease are less pronounced, but it is noticeable that the spine is unstable, the vertebrae can slip or twist relative to each other.
At this time, growth of vertebral bodies can occur - this is called osteophytes.Growths lead to compression of the spinal nerves, closure of the spinal canal occurs, called secondary spinal stenosis.As a result, compression of the spinal cord is possible, which leads to ischemia.
This degree of the disease also includes the results of previous operations to remove the hernia.They can manifest as impaired innervation, paresis and inflammation.
Dorsago and dorsalgia
Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis directly depend on the area of damage to the spine.The most common vertebral syndromes are dorsalgia and dorsalgia.
Dorsago manifests itself in the form of sudden, sharp pain in the chest area.This often happens if a person sits for a long time without changing their posture.Pain can occur when a person's position is physiologically uncomfortable.In addition, it is possible during long-term monotonous work.
Dorsago is also called "chest lumbago".When this happens, the muscles in your back and chest become so tense that it becomes difficult to breathe.
Sometimes the pain goes along the ribs to the sternum and spreads to the back.Sometimes the patient may feel like a myocardial infarction.However, during the electrocardiogram, deviations from the norm are not detected.If you take nitroglycerin or any other heart medication, it will have no effect.
Avoid staying in one position for a long time.Sedentary work is one of the main causes of osteochondrosis.
Dorsalgia is a mild pain that lasts for a long time, sometimes for weeks.The inflamed area of the spine gives "soft" pain.This is uncomfortable, so the person usually comes to the doctor.
Dorsalgia can be expressed by:
- the pain gets worse when a person takes a deep breath or coughs;
- muscles are overstretched;
- motor activity in the neck or back region decreases;
- muscle spasms occur;
- pain intensifies at night and when a person exercises.
Dorsalgia can be upper or lower.First, the main painful manifestations are concentrated in the upper chest and neck.In the second case, the pain is mainly in the sacrum and lumbar region.
Dorsalgia symptoms are very similar to the first manifestations of pneumonia.It is important to remember this in order to diagnose the disease in time.If the diagnosis is made incorrectly and the treatment is prescribed, the patient's condition will only worsen.
When a woman breastfeeds a child, she may experience such manifestations of osteochondrosis.In this case, the disease should be treated only by consulting a doctor, taking into account all the nuances.
In order not to harm the health of the baby and yourself, it is important to weigh all the risks of using certain drugs.
Atypical symptoms
In some cases, the symptoms of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine are completely atypical.A person may even be unaware of the disease, because the symptoms often resemble those of other pathologies.It is worth considering them in more detail and analyzing the situation as a whole:
- pain imitating heart pain that develops during angina and heart attack may appear;coronary dilatation drugs, such as nitroglycerin, have no effect;and ECG shows no abnormalities;
- pain may occur similar to that experienced by women with the development of breast diseases;such pain can last for a long time;the examination does not reveal any problems in the mammary glands;
- the iliac region and abdomen may be painful, the symptoms are not similar to those of gastritis and colitis;pain similar to the pain characteristic of hepatitis or cholecystitis can be observed under the right rib;Digestion is generally disturbed - this is a characteristic symptom of osteochondrosis caused by disturbances in the innervation of internal organs;it is necessary to understand what causes disorders in the process of food digestion, whether the cause is really thoracic osteochondrosis;
- The process of urination and sexual function may be disturbed, because the innervation in the genitourinary system is disturbed;
- when thoracic osteochondrosis worsens, long-term chest pain lasting for weeks, very similar to those present in mammary gland diseases, can be observed;A visit to a mammologist allows you to determine the cause of the pain.
These symptoms are associated with manifestations of pain in the back, as well as intercostal neuralgia.The onset of atypical symptoms is usually observed in the evening.In the morning, as a rule, there is no bleach.If suitable conditions are created that cause pain, the pain increases during the day.