Among the many “characteristic” diseases of our time, neuralgia of the cervical spine is increasingly being diagnosed. Doctors believe that this is due to an increase in the amount of emotional stress, incorrect posture, lack of physical activity, and an increase in the number of provoking factors.
How to avoid getting sick? To do this, you need to know the causes of the disease, methods of its treatment and prevention.
Definition, forms of the disease
Neuralgia is a painful condition of the body caused by compression of the nerve plexuses. Severe pain in this case occurs due to pinching of the spinal nerve roots. This pathology can appear in any part of the spine.
Cervical neuralgia occurs as a result of compression of the occipital nerve. The etiology of the disease involves the division into primary and secondary neuralgia. The latter (symptomatic) appears as a complication after other diseases, and the first (idiopathic) develops independently.
Inflammation of the cervical nerve, causing the development of pathology, can begin for various reasons. These include: injuries, unexpected damage due to an accident, herniated intervertebral discs, sudden hypothermia, severe emotional stress, excessive physical exertion.
Attention! A predisposition to cervical neuralgia may appear in a child with a diagnosis of fetal underdevelopment or as a result of spinal deformation during childbirth.
There are dysesthetic and truncal forms of the disease. In the first case, the painful sensations are superficial, since small nerve roots are subjected to compression. With truncal neuropathy, the nerve plexus of the spinal cord is pinched and the upper limbs are paralyzed.
Treatment options
After receiving the results of diagnostic tests, the doctor decides what treatment methods need to be used to help the patient cope with the problem.
If you start treating cervical neuralgia in time, you can avoid serious complications.
Medicines
Neuralgia is often treated with medication. To achieve the desired effect, experts recommend the use of local analgesics. To eliminate acute pain, a course of corticosteroids is prescribed (for example, Lidocaine, Novocaine, Duloxetine). In the most advanced cases, it is recommended to give analgesic injections for cervical neuralgia (blockade).
Experts also prescribe medications that eliminate seizures, B vitamins, and sedatives. To relieve pain, as well as reduce body temperature (if it is elevated), you may need to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
During the treatment of the disease, the patient must remain in bed, limiting the motor activity of the neck with available means.
Warming compresses and rubbing help stimulate blood flow and oxygen supply to the tissues of the affected area.
Physiotherapeutic methods
To activate the regeneration of soft and bone tissue, it is recommended to undergo physiotherapeutic procedures. The duration of the course is determined taking into account the individual characteristics of each person, the stage of the disease, and the symptoms present.
There are the following physiotherapeutic methods for treating cervical neuralgia:
- Ultrasound therapy - influencing the problem area using high-frequency mechanical vibrations transmitted to damaged tissues.
- Magnetotherapy is the use of a constant, alternating or traveling magnetic field, in continuous or intermittent modes.
- Laser therapy is the effect of weak laser radiation on the body.
- Electrophoresis is based on the injection of drugs through the skin or mucous membrane using an electric current.
Physiotherapy
Complex therapy of the disease necessarily includes physical therapy exercises. It is very effective to go swimming and perform special gymnastic exercises. If there is a pinched area of the cervical nerve, hanging on a ladder will help eliminate the discomfort. The main thing is that the patient does not feel pain while exercising, so all exercises are performed smoothly, without sudden movements.
If you need to sit at a table for a long time, give your body a rest by doing a small set of exercises: turns, tilting your head, raising and lowering your shoulders.
Massage
Therapeutic massage for neuralgia of the cervical region is an integral part of therapy if there are no contraindications. It is very important to entrust this matter to a specialist so as not to cause harm to your health by trying to perform self-massage without experience. By watching a professional perform a massage, you can master the technique and then carry out the therapy yourself.
Often the procedure is performed three times a day for eight to ten minutes. Longer exposure to the affected area can only cause harm. The duration of treatment depends on the stage of the disease at which it was started. The minimum period is ten days. When performing a massage session, you need to focus on your feelings. If you feel a slight pain, you should not worry. If pain remains after the procedure, then the massage technique was incorrect.
ethnoscience
In order for the cervical region to recover as quickly as possible, traditional medicine methods are allowed to be used in parallel with the main treatment. The main thing is to first consult with your doctor so as not to harm the body.
The most effective recipes used for home treatment of neuralgia:
- You need to mix oregano, mint and thyme. Three tablespoons of the mixture are poured into a glass of boiling water and brewed. After first filtering the infusion, it is added to the bath, which must be taken for about ten minutes.
- Finely chop the onion, potatoes, pickled cucumber, mix the contents, then pour in natural vinegar (wine or apple) and leave for a couple of hours. The tincture is used for compresses, which are applied to the back of the head for one hour.
- Painful sensations can be relieved with various ointments, for example, from pork fat and a decoction of lilac buds.
Surgical intervention
When conservative treatment of neck neuralgia does not bring the desired result, there is a need for surgery. Its goal is to excise the tissue that is compressing the occipital nerve. Surgical intervention is performed in the following ways:
- microvascular decompression is a procedure that helps reduce pressure on the occipital nerve, which is located next to other structures, for example, blood vessels.
- Neurostimulation - a special device is inserted into the subcutaneous tissue of the cervical spine, generating an electrical impulse that helps relieve pain. The patient can independently regulate the strength with which neurostimulation will be carried out.
Reasons for appearance
Painful deformation of the spinal roots in the vertebrae of the cervical spine is most often caused by complications of osteochondrosis, cervical arthritis, and herniated intervertebral discs. Thyroid dysfunction, hypothermia, tumor formations in the neck, trauma, and muscle spasms are also considered the most common causes of the disease.
Symptomatic neuralgia can develop against the background of some untreated diseases. These include:
- meningitis;
- inflammatory processes of the central nervous system;
- viral infections;
- encephalitis;
- autoimmune pathologies;
- disruptions in the metabolic processes of spinal tissue.
Doctors believe that provoking factors for the development of neuralgic manifestations are: regular tension in the neck muscles associated with physical overload, and a person’s depressive state.
What is osteochondrosis of the cervical spine
The name osteochondrosis was first proposed by the German physician Hildenbrandt in the 30s of the 20th century to generally describe age-related damage to the musculoskeletal system. In Russia, it was popularized by neuropathologist Dr. Papelyansky in the mid-20th century and has since become firmly established in the vocabulary of doctors and people suffering from back pain. Unfortunately, due to its wide application, this term is often used incorrectly. What is cervical osteochondrosis, and can it be treated? - this article is dedicated to this.
Emergency assistance during an attack of neuralgia
How to provide first aid to a person injured by a pinched cervical nerve? First, you need to urgently call doctors.
To avoid complications, before specialists arrive, you need to place the victim on a flat surface, calm him down, give him a drink of water, a sedative. If you have difficulty breathing, you should ease the movements of the chest, unfasten the clothes on the patient’s chest, and place a small cushion under the neck.
Diagnostics
During the appointment, the neurologist asks the patient about when the pain began to bother him, where it occurs, what provokes it, and asks him to describe the sensations that arise during the attack. A neurological examination is then performed. The doctor asks the patient to turn, tilt his head, presses on certain points on the neck, trying to cause pain.
If after the examination there are still doubts about the diagnosis, or unusual symptoms are detected, the neurologist prescribes an examination. This may include blood tests, MRIs and other diagnostic tests.
Treatment
When diagnosing a disease, a neurologist uses an external examination, a survey of the patient, X-ray data, CT, and MRI. It is important to conduct an in-depth study to obtain a complete picture of the disease.
Attention! Sometimes a patient is misdiagnosed due to similar symptoms. For example, osteochondrosis is diagnosed instead of neuralgia or otitis media (due to referred pain from the neck to the ear).
Traditional
Conservative methods of therapy are usually prescribed:
- bed rest;
- massage;
- heat compresses;
- physiotherapeutic procedures;
- the use of acupuncture, manual therapy;
- physiotherapy.
Medicines are selected individually for each patient. As a rule, the treatment regimen includes: anticonvulsants, sedatives, muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatory drugs.
If a massage course is prescribed, a special ointment is used to relieve pain from neuralgia of the neck. The remedy is selected depending on the cause of the disease. The most commonly used drugs are those with analgesic and warming properties: Menovazin, ichthyol ointment, Finalgon, Voltaren. In combination with NSAIDs, these drugs quickly relieve pain.
In severe cases, surgery is prescribed. Sometimes complex therapy is used, which is the parallel use of traditional and folk methods of treatment.
Treatment recommendations
If you have severe neck pain, or there is suspicion of cervical neuralgia, you should immediately seek help. It is the timely start of treatment that allows you to prevent further pathological changes and guarantee a quick recovery.
When neuralgia is detected at the initial stage of its development, therapy is limited to medication, application of compresses and massage sessions. But patients who ignore all the symptoms of neuralgia or try to solve the problem on their own end up with nothing else left but surgical intervention.
Treatment can be divided into several categories:
- conservative methods;
- drug effects;
- surgical intervention.
Each method has its own characteristics that allow you to cope with cervical neuralgia of the spine.
Conservative treatment
It does not involve the use of surgical methods. Following some rules and following the instructions will help you cope with cervical neuralgia.
- Peace. At rest, the spine does not tense, and therefore it is possible to relieve pain and reduce the load. But staying in bed all the time and not moving is also harmful;
- Massage. To relieve spasms, you need to gently massage the muscle tissue in the affected area. Due to this, blood circulation is normalized and pain discomfort is eliminated;
- A heat compress allows you to influence the problem area of the spine. Don't make the compress too hot. The frequency and duration of application of the compress is determined by the doctor;
- Physiotherapeutic effects. The list of procedures is selected by the attending physician based on the results of an examination of the cervical spine. It is customary to treat such a problem with laser therapy, ultrasound, etc.;
- Physiotherapy. It also has its own characteristics, rules for performing exercises that a specialist will tell you or show you. The complex is selected individually;
- Manual therapy. The task of the chiropractor is to return the joints to the correct position and ensure the most effective effect of the prescribed course of therapy;
- The acupuncture method is not offered everywhere, but with its help it is possible to have a targeted effect on the cervical spine. The technique has proven to be highly effective.
Drug therapy
If the cervical spine is affected and neuralgia develops, doctors usually prescribe a course of medication.
The list of drugs includes the following groups of drugs:
- muscle relaxants;
- anticonvulsants;
- anti-inflammatory drugs to block affected nerve endings;
- drugs to reduce pain;
- sedatives;
- vitamins B.
If at the same time regular massage is prescribed, then it is better to use a special ointment. There are direct massage ointments, as well as those that consolidate the result of the massage, that is, they are applied after the procedure.
Prevention
There are rules that, if followed, prevent the occurrence of disease. To prevent neuralgia of the cervical spine, you should:
- Avoid physical and emotional stress on the body.
- Avoid hypothermia.
- Maintain proper posture and have a sufficient amount of physical activity every day.
- Control your diet, exclude from it foods that destroy the walls of blood vessels (alcohol, spicy seasonings, smoked foods, fatty meats).
- Treat current diseases in a timely manner and prevent them from becoming chronic.
- Pay attention to exercises for the neck muscles.
- At the first symptoms of cervical neuralgia, consult a doctor.
Symptoms of occipital neuralgia
The main manifestation of the disease is headaches. They occur in the back and top of the head, at the base of the skull, and in the neck. Pain may spread to the eyebrows and behind the eyes.
Usually the pain resembles strong injections or electric shock. It can be pulsating, shooting, accompanied by a burning sensation. In some patients, sensitivity to light and sounds increases. Pain can be caused by movements in the neck.
Typically the pain begins in the neck and lower part of the head and spreads upward. Most often it occurs on one side, but the occipital nerves can be affected on both sides.
Chronic headaches occur due to various diseases. Often, people who experience symptoms of occipital neuralgia (and even their doctors) believe that they have tension headaches or migraines.
