Reflex symptoms
Symptoms in this category are characterized by crunching of the vertebrae during rotation of the head, which due to pain forces patients to take a certain position. Osteochondrosis provokes pressure pains that spread to the temporal area. Sometimes patients experience a decrease in visual acuity.
Irritation of the nerve connections in the vertebral artery can provoke a syndrome that is often diagnosed as a disorder of cerebral circulation that causes dizziness.
In this case, dizziness and nausea can be further caused by sudden movement of the head. Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis also include cardiac syndrome. Its manifestation resembles an attack of angina pectoris.
Radicular syndromes
The radicular symptoms of osteochondrosis of the neck are usually the result of spinal cord compression. Disorders of the musculoskeletal system or sensitivity directly depend on which nerve ending is affected:
- S1 - leads to impaired sensitivity in the occipital area;
- S2 - causes pain in the parietal area, which can cause dizziness;
- S3 - reduces the sensitivity of the neck, in addition, there may be a speech disorder;
- S4 - reduces sensitivity in the shoulder area, reduces the tone of the neck muscles and provokes respiratory failure;
- S5 - causes pain and sensitivity in the outer part of the shoulder;
- S6 - causes pain that moves from the neck to the shoulder blade, the outside of the shoulder and even the thumb;
- S7 - causes pain spreading from the neck to the shoulder blade, the back of the shoulder and to the II-IV fingers of the hand.
- S8 - causes pain, reduced sensitivity, which moves from the neck to the forearm, to the little finger.
Symptoms by groups
Dividing the clinical phenomena into groups will help to better understand the symptoms of osteochondrosis. There are three key groups in osteochondrosis. The first group determines the manifestation of pain, the second is reflected in motor disorders.
As for the third group, it is characterized by vascular manifestations. Based on this, it is necessary to consider in detail each type of complication of cervical osteochondrosis.
Nervous system
Defeat of the distal nervous system can lead to cervical osteochondrosis. The pain effect will be accompanied by regular neck pain.
Among the main symptoms are:
- muscle pain;
- joint pain;
- chest pain.
Most often, the onset of pain occurs without external stimuli. When you try to roll over to the other side, raise your head, or cough, there may be an increase in the pain effect. The main location of the pain falls on the neck.
The onset of pain may be similar to an electric shock. In addition, there is tension in the muscles of the neck, difficulty breathing. In acute osteochondrosis, a non-standard posture gradually occurs: the patient's head is slightly tilted to the side.
Cervical lumbago restricts head rotation. While the rotation of the head is often accompanied by crunching of the vertebrae and noise phenomena, especially if the disease has begun. Patients often believe that the cause of pain spasm may be hypothermia of the neck or increased strain on the cervical spine. Therefore, it is important to understand which symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis cause pain and which exacerbate the clinical manifestations of the disease.
As a result, symptoms
Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine often provokes the development of cervical and shoulder sciatica. As a result, patients complain of pain in the back of the neck and upper neck. There are times when the pain moves to the shoulder girdle.
This usually happens when the muscles that are connected to certain nerve endings are tense. The main reason is the compression of the nerve endings by the vertebrae.
Motor disorders
Osteochondrosis often leads to the development of torticollis. This is the result of a spasm of the neck muscles. Such manifestations of the disease lead to a lack of movement in the cervical spine.
Any attempt to turn the head is accompanied by crunching of the vertebrae and neck pain.
X-rays of the cervical vertebrae show clear changes in the individual vertebrae. Compression of the vessels weakens the pulse of the radial artery. Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is often accompanied by whitening of the fingers.
An additional manifestation of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is pain in the shoulder joint. Painful spasm usually occurs at night. Pain is given in the neck or arm, especially during an attempt to move the arm to the side.
Attempts to rest the arm cause the development of joint stiffness and form a kind of posture: the shoulder is pressed against the chest. As a result, neglected osteochondrosis of the cervical spine allows you to raise your arm only at eye level. Periods of exacerbation are often accompanied by fever.
Vascular phenomena
Insufficient blood flow leads to cerebral manifestations of the disease. The main symptoms of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine with vascular manifestations:
- hypothalamus;
- drop syndrome;
- vestibular-stem;
- ochlear stem;
- pharyngo-larynx;
- visual disturbances.
The first symptom indicates a malfunction of the hypothalamus and leads to increased fatigue, sleep disturbance. There is a decrease in the ability to remember. Cases of unreasonable fear or anxiety have been reported. You may also notice a decrease in sexual desire and frequent urination.
The second symptom is characterized by dizziness, fainting and loss of consciousness. Attacks usually lead to weakness in the legs and a feeling of weakness. The third syndrome causes dizziness, nausea and instability when walking.
However, dizziness can be the cause of a number of other diseases. For example, conditions such as vestibular neuritis, migraine or brain tumor can also cause dizziness.
The fourth symptom is tinnitus or hearing loss. The main manifestations of the fifth syndrome are a feeling of dryness or a foreign body in the throat, loss of voice and fatigue during a conversation. The last sign of cervical osteochondrosis is determined by a decrease in visual acuity.
Factors affecting the compression of nerve endings:
- displacement of the spinal discs;
- osteophytes;
- the formation of a protrusion of the vertebrae;
- change in the height of the spinal disc.
Cervical-thoracic osteochondrosis
The basis of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is the destruction of spongy bone tissue. Pathological changes in the spine create conditions for disruption of nerve endings in the chest. As a result, there is a feeling of electric shock, for example, when trying to bend a door.
Cervical-thoracic osteochondrosis is accompanied by pressing and pulling pain in the chest area. Complications cause impaired mobility of the elbow and shoulder joints. But because there are no conditions for spinal disc injury in the thoracic region, this pathology rarely leads to the formation of hernias.
Symptoms of cervicothoracic osteochondrosis:
- fatigue;
- headache, chest pain;
- drop in blood pressure;
- fog before the eyes;
- dizziness;
- noise in the ears;
- pain in the neck (vertebrae) and ribs;
- numbness of the fingers;
- impaired coordination of movements.