With pain in the neck, each person has encountered more than once in his life. If the back of the neck hurts, then the reason, in most cases, lies in the cervical spine. Let's take a closer look at each disease.
Myositis
With hypothermia and a cold, myositis of the neck develops - acute inflammation of the muscles. A person begins to have severe pain in the neck and shoulder, a slight temperature rises. On palpation of the painful area, the skin above the muscle is edematous, swollen, hot to the touch. When you try to turn your head to the affected side, there is a sharp pain and tension in the muscles of the neck.
Myositis can manifest itself against the background of a respiratory or viral disease. Then there is a pain in the throat, neck, swollen lymph nodes.
Treatment
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs will help quickly and effectively stop inflammation. Various ointments and gels can be used locally. Here it is necessary to add an important fact about the finalgone - you need to smear it with a thin layer and cannot be washed off with water under any circumstances.
You can use semi-alcohol and warming compresses - with vodka, diluted alcohol or dimexide. Folk remedies also help well: boiled potatoes, rubbing with honey, applying crushed cabbage leaves.
In addition to the treatment of myositis, colds are treated - antiviral or antibacterial drugs, vitamins, sprays in the nose and throat. For quick relief of a sore throat, a spray helps a lot - a powerful antibacterial and antifungal drug, the effect of which can be felt 20-30 minutes after the start of treatment.
Cervical osteochondrosis
Everyone has heard about the disease, but the reasons for its development are still a mystery.
Predisposing factors are injuries, prolonged forced position, microtrauma of muscles and tendons during hard physical work, dystrophic processes in the spine, old age, menopause.
With protrusion, instability, hernia in the cervical spine, compression of the nerve roots occurs, blood flow in the vertebral artery is disturbed, which leads to cerebral ischemia.
All symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are divided into:
- reflex;
- compression radicular and vascular;
- spinal.
More:
- Reflex symptoms occur with prolonged irritation of the tissue receptors of the pathological spine. Nerve impulses from the affected vertebra enter the spinal cord, causing changes in the surrounding muscles and tissues. The muscles of the healthy side take over all the functions, forming a pathological stereotype of movement. And the muscles on the affected side fix the displaced vertebra in a certain position, preventing its further curvature. But they also do not give the opportunity to take a physiological position. If at this moment a person does not go to a doctor and a chiropractor, muscle atrophy occurs, degenerative changes in the tissues of the vertebrae, cervical osteochondrosis is formed. In the future, the progression of the disease causes inflammation and fibrosis of the muscles of the shoulder girdle, inflammation of the periarticular bag is formed. Reflex symptoms:
- soreness along the spinous processes - palpation of the neck will cause discomfort, pain, shooting in the vertebrae;
- tension and pain in the back of the neck muscles, aggravated by trying to turn the head or probing;
- cervicalgia - aching or sharp pain in the neck, can periodically subside, giving the person a break. But with loads, a long stay in a sitting position (for example, during flights, long trips in a bus or car), the pain will not be long in coming. With cervicalgia, a person can periodically hear a crunch in the neck, feel discomfort and numbness of the skin;
- cervicocranialgia - heaviness and aching pain in the neck that spreads to the head. Most often, the back of the head suffers - there is heaviness, a feeling of "pulsation", numbness, a person wants to support his head with his hand or lean against a hard surface. Periodically there are "tides" - it seems that the back of the head and neck are burning or freezing. Sleep also suffers - it is intermittent, superficial, the patient wakes up in the morning sluggish, apathetic, tired. The pain can spread all over the head - photophobia appears, constricting pains in the temples, neck, eyes, blood pressure rises, nausea and vomiting often occur;
- cervicobrachialgia - pain in the cervical region spreads to the shoulder and arm. There is soreness and spasm of the muscles of the shoulder, stiffness, pain in the shoulder joint, crunching, difficulty when trying to raise or take the arm away.
- Compression of the roots and vessels of the spinal cord is manifested by the syndrome of the vertebral artery. This is a large complex of various manifestations of compression of the vertebral vessels. There are 3 groups of symptoms that directly indicate the disease:
- throbbing and aching headache of a persistent or paroxysmal nature, burning, unbearable. Increases with prolonged uncomfortable position, spreads from occiput to forehead;
- cochleovestibular changes - dizziness, unsteadiness when walking, various noises in the ears (clicking, ringing, buzzing). Dizziness in a patient is constant or paroxysmal, worsening the quality of life of a person;
- vision pathology - darkening and "flies" before the eyes, discomfort and a feeling of "sand", burning, decreased vision.
There are several types of manifestations of the vertebral artery syndrome:
Barre-Lieu syndrome - there is pain in the posterior cervical and occipital region, which passes into the anterior sections of the head - "removing the helmet". It intensifies at night and after sleep, especially if the person slept on an uncomfortable pillow. When turning the head, dizziness and tinnitus appear, darkening in the eyes.
Basilar migraine - before a migraine attack, darkness appears in the eyes, flashing black dots, photophobia. The attack begins with severe dizziness, tinnitus, impaired articulation of the tongue (a person has difficulty pronouncing words). Violent pain in the back of the neck, the back of the head, makes a person take immobility in order to reduce the attack. At the height of the headache, vomiting appears, in severe cases - fainting.
Cochleovestibular symptom - aching pain in the back of the neck, crunching when tilting and turning the head, dizziness, hearing loss and impaired speech intelligibility. Often patients are not able to distinguish between whispered speech.
Ophthalmic syndrome - against the background of cervical osteochondrosis, vision is impaired. A person develops rapid eye fatigue when reading, incoming loss of visual fields, reddening of the conjunctiva and lacrimation.
Spondylarthrosis
The disease is characterized by "wear and tear" of cartilage with bone growths along the edge of the articular surface. The disease occurs at any age, but most often debuts in the elderly. Trauma, inflammation, congenital changes in the joints can cause the development of spondylarthrosis.
Symptoms
The patient is disturbed by aching pain in the cervical spine, which is aggravated by turning and tilting the head. Often a person cannot turn his head completely to the side, an attempt to increase the range of motion causes backache. In the supine position, the pain recedes. In addition to the neck, the spinal region, knee and hip joints are involved in the process.
As the disease progresses, narrowing of the intervertebral canal occurs in the cervical and lumbar regions. Spondylogenic myelopathy develops - a chronic disease of the spine with a weakening of muscle tone and dysfunction of internal organs. Myelopathy provokes increased pain in a person, reduces the speed of blood flow in the vessels of the neck and head.
Spondyloarthritis
Prolonged pain in the back of the neck, the inability to fully bring the head to the chest - symptoms can also speak of rheumatoid arthritis of the spine. The disease develops against the background of polyarthritis - multiple lesions of the joints.
Symptoms
The pain occurs in the back of the neck, spreads to the back of the head, intensifies when the head is tilted back and forth, turning left and right. A person cannot fully move his head, the neck muscles are tense and painful. In severe cases, a life-threatening complication develops - bulbar syndrome. Its manifestations are diverse and depend on the degree of pinching of the medulla oblongata during atlas subluxation. The patient's speech is disturbed - it is slurred, slow and the person quickly gets tired of talking. Swallowing is also disturbed, especially liquid food. A person chokes, fluid flows out through the nose or corners of the mouth. Cardiac activity is disturbed - arrhythmia, tachycardia occur.
In children, cervical spondyloarthritis develops as a complication of acute sinusitis - inflammation of the sinuses. The disease is named Grisel's torticollis after a French physician. The disease is formed with a defect in the articulation of the atlas and the tooth of the axial vertebra.
The symptom of the disease is specific and allows you to quickly make a diagnosis: the child's head leans towards the source of inflammation and is slightly turned towards the healthy side.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis and spondyloarthritis is the same. The patient needs consultation and treatment with a manual therapist. The specialist will quickly and painlessly put the vertebrae in place, eliminating the need for expensive treatment in the clinic. If necessary, every six months or a year, a neurologist in the clinic prescribes a course of medications: these are injections that are given intramuscularly or intravenously and tablets.
Well helps in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis massage of the collar zone, acupuncture. You can use self-massage - rub the neck muscles from the back of the head down to the shoulders with soft circular movements. You can not massage the muscles of the neck with force - you can provoke an increase in arterial and intracranial pressure.
Patients often use the applicator - the point effect of the needles reduces muscle tension, stimulates blood circulation. It is necessary to use applicators only after consulting a doctor and making an accurate diagnosis - needles are contraindicated in the oncological process, as they stimulate tumor growth.
In case of vertebral artery syndrome and cerebral ischemia, nootropic therapy is mandatory: intravenous injections of drugs that stimulate vascular circulation, increase brain oxygenation, reduce dizziness attacks, and tinnitus.
Tuberculosis of the spine
With the spread of tuberculosis in the bones and joints, it is the spine that is most often affected. The danger of the disease is in a long period of silence. Tuberculosis does not manifest itself in any way for 2-4 years. As the disease progresses and the vertebral bodies are destroyed, heaviness appears in the neck and shoulders, vague pains in the spine without a clear localization.
A person is not able to hold his head on his own for a long time, he tries to constantly support it with his hand. Due to severe pain in the neck, the patient avoids turning and tilting his head. As the vertebra is destroyed, the process spreads to the surrounding tissues, an abscess is formed - an abscess in the capsule. A swelling appears in the back of the neck, of a densely elastic consistency, slowly increasing in size. An abscess may spread to the pharynx, coughing, difficulty swallowing, and sore throat.
Treatment of the tuberculosis process is carried out in a specialized tuberculosis dispensary. The treatment is difficult and lengthy, with many side effects. Powerful bactericidal preparations of synthetic production are used. Course doses with 2-3 drugs are prescribed. In the process of treatment, monthly blood and urine tests, examination for mycobacterium tuberculosis are carried out. Once every two months, the patient undergoes an X-ray examination.
Cancer of the cervical spine
The tumor can occur at any age. A neoplasm can grow from cartilaginous, bone and nervous tissue. The tumor can be an independent disease or be a metastatic focus from another organ. Most often, metastases in the cervical region give cancer of the breast, prostate, lungs and stomach.
Symptoms will increase as the tumor spreads: a person constantly has a sore neck, difficulties appear when tilting and turning the head. There is weakness, sweating, fatigue. The growth of the tumor and compression of the roots and blood vessels will lead to trembling and weakness of the arms and shoulder girdle, constant headaches, dizziness.
Treatment
Apply:
- surgical intervention - complete radical excision of the tumor within healthy tissues;
- chemotherapy - cytotoxic drugs that slow down the division of tumor cells and prevent its further development;
- radiation therapy - the effect on tumor cells with ionizing radiation;
- symptomatic treatment - painkillers in the last stages of cancer, narcotic analgesics are most often used.
Cancer of the spine is an extremely dangerous disease, the manifestations of which are often attributed to osteochondrosis and treatment is late. Therefore, when pain occurs in the cervical spine, it is necessary to do an x-ray or magnetic resonance imaging. This will allow you to quickly diagnose and start appropriate treatment.
In the polyclinic, MRI is prescribed extremely rarely for financial reasons - but this examination is carried out for a fee in many private centers. It is better to pay several thousand rubles and protect yourself than to treat the disease for a long time, not knowing what the source of the trouble is.