Features of the disease
According to medical statistics, more than 30% of the world's population suffers from osteochondrosis. And every year the patients are getting younger. But compared to cervical and lumbar osteochondrosis, thoracic osteochondrosis is much less common.
- has a natural bend, due to which part of the load from walking upright is removed from it;
- the other part falls on the ribs and sternum, which play the role of a physiological framework;
- it is the longest part of the spine (12 vertebrae), but the spinal canal is the narrowest;
- the thoracic vertebrae are small in size, but provided with long spinous processes;
- it is inactive.
If a deformation of the intervertebral discs occurs in the thoracic region, it disappears gradually. But it manifests painfully.
Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis
How clearly the disease manifests itself depends on its stage, the lifestyle and the age of the patient.
- pain. It is felt in the upper back, between the shoulder blades and covers the intercostal spaces with neuralgia. Worse with coughing, deep breathing and turning the body. Because there are many nerve fibers in the chest, chest pain (dorsago) appears, as if it were a heart attack.
- Radiculitis. In addition to the pain, there is a loss of sensation. Usually the limbs, upper abdomen and the area below the collarbone are numb.
- Paresthesia. It feels like goosebumps crawling all over your body.
- Cardiac syndrome. Continued severe heart pain that did not go away after taking the medicine.
- Pulmonary syndrome. It presents with suffocation and congestion in the lungs.
- Abdominal syndrome. It is characterized by constant pain in the digestive organs.
- Muscle strain. It occurs reflexively in the upper back and chest.
In men and women, the clinical picture is approximately the same. But the signs of breast osteochondrosis in women usually appear at the beginning of menopause. Before that, the spine is protected by estrogens.
In men, complications of the disease can affect potency.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis are much more alarming at night than during the day. They are aggravated by hypothermia, movement and stress. It is believed that women suffer from spinal pain much more.
Localization of the pain syndrome
The diagnosis of the disease is complicated by the symptomatic similarity with other diseases: myocardial infarction, angina pectoris and gastrointestinal disorders.
- With thoracic osteochondrosis, symptoms with a feeling of pain in the heart appear when the first to sixth thoracic nerves are affected. In women, the mammary glands can get sick.
- If thoracic nerves 6 to 9 are affected, stomach pain occurs. The sensations are the same as in colitis and gastritis. There may be a feeling of a foreign body in the esophagus.
- In the small intestine, kidneys and genitals, if the pathological processes affect the 11th and 12th discs.
In order to make an accurate diagnosis, the orthopedist prescribes an examination of the patient.
X-rays, computed tomography or nuclear magnetic resonance, EKG and mammography for women should be done.
The results will help determine the stage of the disease and treatment options.
Stages of the disease
| scene | Changes | Symptoms |
| First | Dehydration of the discs, which leads to a loss of elasticity. Their height decreases, but their width increases - the intervertebral disc gradually flattens. | The pain appears directly in the damaged ring. It can be a pull or a shoot. |
| Second | Annulus fibrosus begins to disintegrate. The nerve roots are compressed, causing pain. | There is pain when moving. Discomfort appears when maintaining a posture for a long time. |
| third | The annulus fibrosus tears, resulting in a herniated disc. Scoliosis or pathological kyphosis develops. | There is pain when moving. Discomfort appears when maintaining a posture for a long time. |
| Fourth | There is friction of the vertebrae against each other, which provokes displacement of the intervertebral joints. The tissue around the vertebrae becomes inflamed. Cartilage tissue is replaced by bone tissue, which reduces motor functions. Fibrosis occurs. | There is pain when moving. Discomfort appears when maintaining a posture for a long time. |
Stages of exacerbation and remission can be observed. The latter is often seen at stage 4.
Degrees of disease
This is a more modern classification of symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis, which is used by specialists.
| Degrees | Changes and symptoms |
| First | Intervertebral disc rupture caused by sudden movement or strain. Sharp pain, similar to the passage of an electric current down the spine. Muscle stretching. |
| Second | It is characterized by instability of the spine. Pain on movement. Protrusion. |
| third | The pain becomes constant. Loss of sensitivity. Change in gait. Severe headaches. Difficulty breathing. tachycardia. |
| Fourth | The spine is unstable: the vertebrae slide and twist. Osteophytes grow, compress the spinal nerves and put pressure on the spinal cord. |
Thoracic osteochondrosis can cause serious diseases that will be difficult to treat.
Osteochondrosis of the chest
Symptoms in women practically do not differ from the clinical picture in men. The main difference in this case is that in the female half of humanity, osteochondrosis develops at an older age. The female body has one peculiarity - estrogens effectively protect the intervertebral discs from destruction, which is why the signs of osteochondrosis in women most often begin to appear during menopause or with hormonal imbalance. In addition, as already noted, the signs of thoracic osteochondrosis can be similar to the symptoms of dangerous diseases of the mammary glands.
Therefore, women are required to undergo a test such as a mammogram to clarify the diagnosis.
Breast osteochondrosis in women can manifest itself in different ways. The clinical picture will depend on the age, the stage of the pathology, as well as which vertebra is affected and how much it is affected. One of the signs of osteochondrosis of the chest in women is burning and itching between the shoulder blades.
- Dorsago ("chest lumbago", "dagger pain") is a sudden severe sharp pain in the chest (between the shoulder blades), occurring most often after a long stay in the same uncomfortable position. With lumbago in the chest, the muscles tense up sharply and strongly - a person feels as if it has become difficult for him to breathe. Pain during dorsago may increase if you twist your upper body.
- Thoracalgia is chronic mild pain in the sternum. Thoracalgia can occur not only with osteochondrosis, but also with diseases of the internal organs located in this area (lungs, heart, stomach). The main difference between such pain in osteochondrosis is its superficiality and segmental manifestation along the intercostal spaces. Thoracalgia with osteochondrosis is aggravated by movements and deep breathing and subsides with rest.
- tingling, goosebumps in some areas of the skin;
- burning, itching between shoulder blades;
- cold feeling in the legs;
- pain in the pharynx and esophagus;
- dysfunctions of the stomach and intestines.
Treatment of pathology in women
In practice, it is impossible to completely get rid of the already progressing thoracic osteochondrosis, but it is quite possible to slow down or even stop the formation of a pathological degenerative-dystrophic process in the tissues of the spinal motor segments with the help of the means and methods of modern medicine. . The optimal therapeutic effect can be achieved only with an integrated approach to the treatment of this pathology with the help of drugs, various physical therapy techniques and targeted training therapy (physical therapy) techniques.
Symptoms and treatment of osteochondrosis of the chest in women do not differ much from those in men. In the acute period of osteochondrosis of the thoracic segment of the spine, the patient needs intensive treatment of exacerbation, during which various drugs and physical procedures are used to eliminate, first of all, the pain syndrome and, in parallel, othernegative manifestations of the disease.
During remission, the patient should be prescribed supportive treatment, which is mainly based on taking drugs that restore the osteochondral structure and physiotherapy. In particularly severe cases, surgical intervention is sometimes used to stabilize the position of the spine.
Sensation in women with osteochondrosis
- Disease manifestations in the area of the heart. In this case, the symptoms are more similar to heart diseases, such as a heart attack or angina pectoris. The pain is dull or aching and can last for months. However, no vascular drugs led to improvement and ECG results revealed no abnormalities.
- Discomfort in the mammary glands. It is most often manifested in women, who are characterized by unpleasant painful sensations. It can often be confused with diseases of the mammary glands. In this case, a more detailed diagnosis is required.
- Spot spasms and pain in the abdominal cavity. It is distinguished by signs characteristic of various pathological processes in the organs of the gastrointestinal tract, which are often confused with gastritis, ulcer or cholecystitis. Intensifies with physical movements.
Experts also identified two signs of thoracic osteochondrosis, which, if detected, can immediately indicate the development of the disease - the so-called dorsago and dorsalgia.
Complications of the disease
Thoracic osteochondrosis is a painful disease that significantly reduces the patient's quality of life.
Often, osteochondrosis affects gradually or several departments at once.
- to disorders of the cardiovascular system;
- vegetative system;
- digestive;
- respiratory;
- seizure;
- vertigo;
- attacks of panic and fear, which occur with rapid heart rate and suffocation;
- chronic fatigue;
- Herpes zoster.
Therefore, the treatment of the disease must be comprehensive, aimed at eliminating all symptoms. When diagnosed on time and correctly, the treatment has a favorable prognosis.