MRI picture of degenerative-dystrophic changes in the cervical spine

The spinal column serves as the central axis of the body. This structure protects the spinal cord and ensures the function of upright posture. The main elements are the vertebrae and the discs between them.

During life, the human body is exposed to various adverse effects, combined with the natural aging processes leading to the development of diseases. The most common degenerative changes in the spine are: osteochondrosis, spondylosis, spondyloarthrosis. Pathologies are accompanied by structural and functional disorders. The consequences of degenerative diseases are protrusions and herniated discs, spondylolisthesis, and stenosis of the spinal canal. Magnetic resonance imaging allows you to visualize all structures of the spine, diagnose degenerative processes in the early stages of development, and detect complications.

MRI scan of the neck

Symptoms of dystrophic changes in the cervical spine

Degenerative changes in the cervical spine occur slowly in the body and, during their development, begin to manifest themselves with the following symptoms:

• You begin to suffer from headaches of unknown etymology.
• You are tormented by wandering pain in the shoulders and spinal joints.
• You feel a decrease in the range of motion in your neck. You cannot turn your head completely to the right or left.
• There is a constant feeling of “petrification” in the shoulders.
• Sometimes there is a feeling of numbness in the hands, and you need to constantly stretch your limbs.
• Regular lumbago occurs.
• There is a swelling on the back of the neck to the touch.
• You notice a curvature of the spine, stoop, and cervical lordosis.

Sometimes cervical osteochondrosis can cause dizziness and even fainting. It is known that there are arteries in the cervical spine. With osteochondrosis, the arteries can become pinched and cause headaches and dizziness. But this phenomenon is quite rare in the practice of doctors. Most often, dizziness in people is caused by vascular problems, diseases of the ENT organs, strokes, and vestibular anemia.

What are degenerative-dystrophic changes in the spine?

Both among ordinary patients and in the medical information space, it is customary to equate the concept of degenerative-dystrophic changes in the cervical spine with the term “osteochondrosis,” which is not entirely correct.
Osteochondrosis is only one of the forms of manifestation of the degeneration process in vertebral structures. But often many symptoms that are completely unrelated to this form of degenerative changes in the spine are attributed to this condition. For example, cervical osteochondrosis has nothing to do with the vestibular analyzer and does not affect the inner ear system. It is not always correct to attribute pain symptoms in the ear area to it. Initial appointment with a NEUROLOGIST

ONLY 1800 rubles!

(more about prices below)

Prevention methods

What can be done to minimize the risk of the disease returning? Any doctor will tell you that the only, but extremely effective preventive measure can be normalizing your lifestyle. Stop smoking and drinking alcohol; if this is not possible, then reduce the number of cigarettes and glasses of wine to a minimum. Review your nutrition system, eliminate junk food from your diet, give preference to fresh fish and meat, seasonal vegetables and fruits. Move more: cervical osteochondrosis of the 2nd degree occurs in those who neglect physical activity. Walk for at least half an hour at least once a day; if you have the time and opportunity, sign up for a pool or yoga class.

Causes of the disease

Cervical, lumbar, thoracic, sacral areas of the spine can become targets of degenerative processes in the spine. Many scientists believe that this is a kind of payment a person pays for his upright posture. Due to the load that the spine receives daily, over time, the content of hyaluronic acid and bound water in the nucleus pulposus of the intervertebral discs decreases. The collagen network is also destroyed. As a result, the core loses its gel properties, and the disc begins to thin out and lose elasticity. There is a process of weakening the adhesion force between the collagen plates of the fibrous ring. All this becomes the cause of cracks and breaks in it. In addition, due to lack of nutrition, lime salts begin to be deposited near the vertebrae. Gas (nitrogen) is released from the disk substance, the so-called vacuum phenomenon. The marginal parts of the disc protrude beyond the vertebral bodies, forming protrusions.

Types of degenerative changes in the spine

Degenerative changes in the cervical spine in medicine include:

• osteochondrosis, which can manifest itself as degeneration of the intervertebral disc, disc protrusions, their calcification and vacuum phenomenon, spondylolisthesis, Schmohl's hernia;
• spondylosis, Forestier disease;
• intervertebral disc herniation or extrusion;
• spondyloarthrosis - arthrosis of the intervertebral joints (facet syndrome), Bostrup syndrome;
• hypertrophy of the ligamentum flavum;
• spinal canal stenosis.

Most often, neurologists diagnose their patients with a degenerative pathological change such as osteochondrosis. The term "osteochondrosis" was proposed by two neurologists Brandon and Popelyansky in the mid-20th century and was subsequently widely popularized in Soviet medicine. Osteochondrosis itself means an inflammatory process and degenerative changes in the cartilage of the spine. This change is chronic and develops in all people with age, sooner or later. Most residents of St. Petersburg, if they do an MRI of the spine after 40 years, will find at least minor signs of osteochondrosis.

Previous Next

Gymnastics for cervical osteochondrosis

Therapeutic gymnastics is an effective method of eliminating the manifestations of osteochondrosis, which also helps to avoid the progression of the pathological process and achieve stable remission. A set of physical exercises is selected individually. Its volume and nature depend on the degree of complexity of the disease, its clinical manifestations and the presence of consequences of the disease in the person.

Among the main clinical effects of therapeutic exercises, the following should be highlighted:

• strengthening the muscular corset of the back and the ligaments that hold the cervical vertebrae in the correct anatomical position;
• posture alignment;
• improving blood flow to soft tissues;
• normalization of innervation.

It is important to remember that a person should not feel any pain or discomfort while performing the exercises. Therapeutic exercises can be used for therapeutic purposes, as well as to prevent the development of osteochondrosis.

Stages of the disease

Staging of degenerative diseases of the spine is very conditional, since this group includes various forms of degeneration. In the medical literature, it is most often customary to distinguish 3 stages of the progression process:

• dysfunction - the appearance of processes leading to rupture of the fibrous ring;
• instability - the disc loses its stability and changes its height and position;
• restabilization is the body’s response to disc instability in the form of the process of formation of bone growths (osteophytes) and narrowing of the spinal canal.

Another cause of degeneration

Hereditary predisposition plays a certain role in the development of DDSD. Namely, the formation of a certain type of collagen that makes up the annulus fibrosus of the disc. Some fibers are flexible and elastic and can be subjected to repeated stress without any wear. Unfortunately, other types of collagen are brittle and can only be deformed a limited number of times before breaking. Therefore, when collagen of the second type predominates in the intervertebral discs, degeneration and damage can occur even in children at an early age.

Diagnostics

A neurologist diagnoses back diseases. If degenerative-dystrophic diseases in the cervical spine are suspected, he will issue a referral for an MRI of the cervical spine. Since degeneration, as a rule, is not local in nature, but affects the entire spinal column, doctors often prescribe a comprehensive tomographic examination of the back - MRI of the entire spine. In case of cervical osteochondrosis with symptoms of dizziness, a neurologist may suspect cervical artery syndrome and prescribe the patient an MRI of the cervical spine and MRI of the neck vessels to assess the condition of the cervical arteries and veins.

How to recognize

Arthrosis of the cervical vertebrae is accompanied by dull, aching pain, usually one-sided, which intensifies with movement. Patients complain of morning pain. Unpleasant sensations originate in the neck area, and then move to the shoulder blades and arms, the syndrome intensifies with palpation.

Other characteristic symptoms of the disease are:

• paroxysmal dizziness or migraine;
• decreased range of head movement due to pain (for example, a person can tilt their head 45-50°);
• crunching when moving the neck;
• specific sounds in the ears;
• visual impairment;
• pain in the chest area;
• numbness in the lower part of the face.

At later stages, against the background of a total lack of synovial fluid in the joints, deformities of the spinal column appear, and systemic hypertension can also develop - an unexplained increase in blood pressure. If the disease is complicated by radicular symptoms, such as a pinched nerve, its form is diagnosed - uncovertebral arthrosis. It is not easy to recognize the disease on your own: based on its symptoms, it can easily be confused with a pathology of the cardiovascular system or brain.

Symptoms of arthrosis of the cervical vertebrae are not at all typical for diseases of the musculoskeletal system

What will an MRI show for degenerative changes in the spine?

The MRI picture of dystrophic changes in the cervical region of the back will be visible to doctors in the images based on a number of clear signs:

• by the dark color of the discs, since during degenerative processes water leaves the discs;
• reducing the height of the disc;
• the presence of osteophytic spurs in the area of ​​the edges of the end plates;
• prolapse of the disc into the tubular substance of the vertebra;
• displacement of the overlying vertebra in relation to the underlying one;
• fatty degeneration within the vertebral bodies.

Treatment

60% of people aged 35 years and older have serious forms of degenerative changes in the spine, which significantly impair their quality of life and require consultation with doctors. A neurologist treats degenerative-dystrophic diseases of the cervical spine. Basically, such changes in the cervical spine from the doctor will require either procedural therapy (droppers, acupuncture, plasma therapy) and pharmacological treatment, or physical therapy (massage, manual therapy, reflexology, unloading treatment based on spinal traction, vibration stimulation, exercise therapy). If a patient comes to see a neurologist with severe pain, the doctor will most likely suggest a therapeutic blockade or start taking painkillers or anti-inflammatory medications. You need to understand that medical blockade is not a method of therapy, it only helps relieve back pain in order to begin systemic treatment. Therapeutic measures for degenerative-dystrophic changes in the spine are aimed primarily at slowing down degeneration and improving the nutrition of intervertebral discs and vertebrae.

Prevention

As preventive measures to maintain the health of your neck and back, neurologists at medical centers in St. Petersburg recommend:

• avoid static poses;
• swim in the pool and support your back with physical exercises;
• Monitor the level of vitamin B12 in the blood and eat vitamin B-containing foods.

For older patients, depending on the stage of degenerative changes in the cervical spine, the following will be indicated:

• do an MRI of the spine once a year to monitor the rate of degenerative changes;
• undergo a course of plasma therapy for the spine 1-2 times a year;
• do a course of therapeutic massage of the collar zone, exercise therapy, manual therapy;
• do a seasonal (spring - autumn) procedure for drip vitaminization of the body.

Author: Shogenov Ramish Kurbanovich

Neurologist with 10 years of experience

Benefits of massage

For osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, massage helps to increase the tone of the muscle layer and eliminate pain. Today, experienced massage therapists use different massage techniques in their practice, but the most effective for osteochondrosis are:

• stroking to stimulate the upper muscle layers, which begins from the collar area, gradually moving to the area of ​​the collarbone and armpit;
• rubbing, which helps improve blood flow and relieve tension;
• squeezing, as a method of influencing deeper areas of the skin, is carried out by grasping tissue across the neck;
• kneading, which is an impact on the deep layers of neck tissue and, if performed incorrectly, can harm the patient.

Only an experienced specialist should perform massage procedures. An illiterate approach to treatment can provoke an exacerbation of osteochondrosis in the patient and even the appearance of severe consequences.