Osteochondrosis rarely develops in the thoracic spine - the intervertebral discs there are smaller and thinner than in the cervical or lumbar spine. The thoracic region is less mobile, the main load falls on the ribs and the breastbone.
Unlike cervical and lumbar osteochondrosis, chest symptoms differ only in the location of pain. The nature of the pain and its duration are similar. With prolapse in the thoracic region, the spinal cord is not affected. Read on about it and more.
Stages of pathology
Over time, osteochondrosis usually progresses. Depending on the severity of the manifestation, the pathology is divided into 4 stages.
Preclinical
There is minimal disturbance in the spine. There may be a mild pain syndrome, tight back muscles. It is possible to develop chest pain - chest pain, but this is a rare event.
Discogenic sciatica
There is a change in the structure of the intervertebral discs. Pain of moderate intensity may appear in the affected part of the spine. The patient is efficient. But his muscular endurance indicators are declining.
Vascular-radicular
At this stage, the fibrous ring is completely destroyed. A herniated disc is formed, the process of deformation of the fibrous ring continues, which leads to its rupture. Then the nucleus pulposus falls into the space under the ligaments. A herniated disc forms. The process affects the tissues located at the level of the disc, the work of blood vessels, muscles, nerves, ligaments is disturbed. The disease becomes chronic.
Change in the shape of the bone structure
The vertebra grows, its surface becomes ribbed, uneven. Muscles start to contract spontaneously, which leads to limited mobility of the entire spine or a specific vertebra. Pinching of the nerves that extend from the spinal cord occurs. This leads to a deterioration of the impulses from the brain to the tissues and organs of the body.
The mobility of the spine as a whole is preserved, but the individual vertebrae become fragile and can easily collapse. If the disease is not treated, it proceeds to the fourth stage.
Regeneration of intervertebral disc tissue and replacement of scar tissue
The damaged intervertebral disc is not able to perform its functions well, which leads to the convergence of the bodies of neighboring vertebrae. This leads to abnormalities of the intervertebral joints called spondylarthrosis. In this case, twisting or displacement of the vertebrae relative to neighboring vertebrae may occur.
The body uses its own compensation mechanisms. To relieve the load in the damaged disc, the vertebra flattens and enlarges. Its area therefore increases. And the tissue of the fibrous ring, which has collapsed, can be replaced with bone.
Sometimes this reduces the pain, however, as the vertebrae grow larger, the holes in the spine become even narrower - the nerve is pinched.
Symptoms of the disease
Symptoms of breast osteochondrosis are often caused by the following factors:
- the age of the patient;
- disease of the spine;
- stage of disease development;
- the patient's condition is remission or exacerbation of the disease.
Symptoms also include:
- radiculopathy - painful damage to nerve endings in the spinal cord;
- abdominal syndrome;
- heart syndrome, changes in the heart muscle - it is characterized by severe pain and does not respond to nitroglycerin;
- pulmonary syndrome: congestion, pulmonary hypoxia;
- paresthesia - a feeling of "goosebumps" on the body;
- pain in the area of the compressed nerve;
- decreased sensitivity to temperature fluctuations and to touch;
- violations of the motor function of the spine.
The patient's body temperature does not rise. This serves as a sign that allows you to differentiate the pathology.
The degree of the disease
Lumbago
It is a sharp pain that penetrates the body. It manifests itself when lifting heavy objects and other physical activities - the pain is similar to an electric shock.
In terms of morphology, an unexpected rupture of the intervertebral disc capsule occurs when the load is too high. This traumatic injury leads to irritation of the nerves - pain appears.
The muscles are tense and this is expressed well. Lumbar lordosis is smoothed. Thus, the load is redistributed, and the intervertebral disc is compressed even more, resulting in edema, which increases pain.
When the pathology is concentrated in the neck area, neck pain appears - it is manifested by pain when rotating the head and palpating the cervical muscles. With an exacerbation, cervicocrialgia is often observed, which is manifested by the fact that a person has a severe headache in the region of the occiput. There may be tinnitus, dizziness, a sensation of flies in the eyes, and pain in the teeth.
Dizziness
They appear as a result of a narrowing of the cavity of the spinal canal. The intervertebral disc protrudes and compresses the vessels. The brain is unable to get the volume of blood it needs. You may experience a sharp headache, numb hands, and sore shoulders.
Difficulty breathing, which causes insufficient oxygen to enter the brain. This leads to shooting pains in the region of the heart.
Intervertebral hernia
At this stage of development, the picture looks quite serious - the spinal canal and intervertebral cavities are significantly narrowed. As a result, a hernia can form - a dangerous defect. Often at this stage of the disease it is necessary to resort to surgical intervention.
Treatment of third degree osteochondrosis depends on root compression. It is possible to use the same techniques as in the second degree. However, when the pain persists within fifteen days and symptoms of prolapse (prolapse of the vertebra) are present, surgery is necessary.
Growths on the vertebrae
As a rule, at this stage of the disease, the manifestations of the hernia disappear, the symptoms of the disease are less pronounced, however, it is noticed that the spine is unstable, the vertebrae may slip or twist in relation to each other. others.
At this stage, the growth of the vertebral bodies can occur - this is called osteophytes. The growths cause compression of the spinal nerves, an overlap 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 consequences of previous operations to remove the hernia. They can manifest as disturbed innervation, paresis, inflammation.
Back pain and back pain
Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis depend directly on the area of the spinal injury. Most often, a distinction is made between vertebral syndromes of back pain and back pain.
Dorsago manifests itself as a sharp, sudden pain that occurs 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, this is possible when doing monotonous work for a long time.
Dorsago is also called "thoracic lumbago". When this happens, the muscles in your back and chest contract so hard that it becomes difficult to breathe.
Sometimes the pain passes along the ribs to the breastbone, radiates to the area of the scapula. Sometimes the patient may think it is a myocardial infarction. However, when performing an EKG, deviations from the norms are not detected. If you take nitroglycerin or some other heart remedy, there will be no results.
Avoid staying in one position for a long time. Sedentary work is one of the main causes of osteochondrosis.
Back pain is mild pain that is present for a long time, sometimes up to these weeks. The inflamed part of the spine gives a "dull" pain. It's uncomfortable, so the person usually comes to the doctor.
Back pain can be expressed by the fact that:
- the pain gets worse when the person inhales deeply or coughs;
- the muscles are overworked;
- motor activity in the neck or lumbar region decreases;
- there is a muscle spasm;
- the pain is worse at night and when the person is physically active.
The back pain is upper and lower. At first, the main painful manifestations are concentrated in the upper chest, in the neck. In the second case, it hurts mainly in the area of the sacrum and lower back.
The symptoms of back pain 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 wrong and treatment is prescribed, the patient's condition will only worsen.
When a woman breastfeeds her baby, she may have such manifestations of osteochondrosis. It is enough to treat the disease in this situation by contacting a doctor, taking into account all the nuances.
It is important to weigh all the risks associated with the use of certain medicines so as not to harm the health of the baby and yours.
Atypical symptoms
In some cases, the symptoms of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine are completely atypical. A person may not even be aware of the condition, as the symptoms are often similar to those of other conditions. They must be deepened and analyze the situation as a whole:
- the appearance of pain mimicking the heart, which develops during angina and heart attack, is possible; coronary dilation drugs, such as nitroglycerin, have no effect; and the ECG shows no abnormalities;
- pain may occur, similar to that which occurs in women with the development of diseases of the mammary glands; this pain can last a long time; during the examination, problems with the mammary glands are not detected;
- the iliac region and abdomen may be painful, the symptoms are not similar to those of gastritis and colitis; pain under the right rib may be observed, similar to that which characterizes hepatitis or cholecystitis; digestion is usually disturbed - this is also a characteristic symptom of osteochondrosis, which occurs due to disturbances in the innervation of internal organs; it is necessary to understand what caused the disruption of the process of digestion of food, is this really the cause of thoracic osteochondrosis;
- the process of urination and sexual function may be disturbed, as the innervation of the genitourinary system is deformed;
- when the thoracic osteochondrosis worsens, there may be long-term pain, weeks, in the breastbone, very similar to those present in diseases of the mammary gland; a visit to the mammologist can identify 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 whiter. The pain increases throughout the day if the right conditions are created for it, causing pain.