How to relieve acute lower back pain. Acute lower back pain: causes, treatment methods. Why do you need exercises in the subacute period?

How to quickly relieve lower back pain? First of all, to eliminate unpleasant sensations and discomfort, you should understand the cause of the pain. Back pain is caused by injuries, curvature of the spinal column, inflammatory processes in the muscles, diseases of the internal organs, excessive stress on the spine, drafts leading to myositis or pregnancy.

The patient should visit a doctor who will make the correct diagnosis and then eliminate the root cause of the disease. But it is not always possible to visit the hospital, and you need to get back on your feet quickly. For this, there are a number of therapeutic procedures and recipes that are used at home.

How to quickly heal your back when you have a lumbago? We lie down on a flat surface so that the muscles relax a little. After a couple of minutes, we roll over onto our backs and raise our legs to an elevated position so that our hips are at a right angle. The pain quickly subsides. Mechanism of action: removing stress from the spine. If you lie down without raising your legs, the spine will still be loaded. After the pain subsides, we carefully rise without making jerking movements. To do this, we turn over on our side and get on all fours. We hold on to the support, straighten our backs and rise.

Massotherapy

The answer to the question of how to quickly get rid of pain is simple - massage. It will improve blood circulation, make muscle tissue more elastic, relieve tension and lymph congestion. Doctors recommend using vacuum cup massage, relaxing massage, stone massage, shiatsu, etc. to quickly relieve pain. The type of massage and the duration of the course are determined by the doctor.

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After the massage, the following exercise is done: the patient lies down on a hard surface, turns on his side so that he is at the very edge. If the pain is localized on one side, then the patient should lie on the healthy side. If discomfort is felt on both sides, then the exercise is done alternately on each side.

The patient bends his back and bends it. The leg on which the patient lies is bent at the knee and hip, and the upper one hangs freely. The person turns his pelvis towards the surface. He turns his head away from his dangling leg. Holds the surface with one hand to maintain balance.

Under the weight of the hanging limb, the lumbar region will begin to tense, raise the leg a little, exhale, hold your breath for 30 seconds. Inhaling, we turn towards the dangling leg. We relax again and let the leg hang under its own weight. We repeat the exercise several times.

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You can massage your lower back yourself if no one is around and your lumbar region is sore. To do this, a person sits on a flat surface. You need to place your thumb on your lower back and bend your knees. We make stroking movements for three minutes, from top to bottom towards the tailbone. We begin stroking the ribs, gradually moving towards the spinal column. We make movements first on one side, then rest and move to the second side.

Osteochondrosis is a degenerative disease of the spine, one of the most common human pathologies. The disease is characterized by gradual destruction of the cartilage tissue of the vertebrae: as the disease progresses, ligaments, muscles, and bone structures are involved in destructive processes.

The most indicative sign of pathology is back pain of various types - sharp, aching, acute, periodic and constant. It is useful for all patients with degenerative diseases of the spine to know how to relieve pain in osteochondrosis and eliminate inflammation in the acute stage of the disease.

Pain in degenerative diseases of the spine

Pain is the main, but not the only symptom of osteochondrosis. The destruction of cartilage tissue itself is not accompanied by pain, especially at the initial stage of the disease. Painful sensations occur when pathological transformations affect nerve endings, muscles and ligaments.

Disease processes lead to loss of elasticity and mobility of the intervertebral discs. At the progressive stages of osteochondrosis, cracks appear in the discs, and the fibrous ring changes its anatomical position. These processes lead to the occurrence of protrusions and herniations of intervertebral discs: these are the main and most dangerous complications of the disease.

Near the intervertebral discs are nerve endings, blood vessels and the spinal cord itself. Deformed discs compress nerve endings and injure them. This process is the primary cause of pain symptoms, inflammation, spasms of muscles and ligaments. Back pain often radiates to other parts of the body, since the nerve endings of the spinal cord are connected to all systems of the body.

Pain symptoms in lesions of various parts of the spine are extremely diverse. In the progressive stages of the disease, in addition to back pain, patients may experience neck pain, headaches, cervical, shoulder, stomach and intestinal pain. Unpleasant symptoms occur in the legs, feet, gluteal muscles, and pelvic organs (often with impaired functionality).

Signs intensify with:

• Physical activity;
• Fatigue;
• Staying in one position for a long time;
• Stress;
• Hypothermia;
• Infectious processes in the body.

With severe compression of the spinal cord and blood vessels, serious pathologies of internal organs are possible. Compression in the cervical and lumbar regions is especially dangerous. Often, the consequence of pathological processes in advanced osteochondrosis are such dangerous diseases as stroke, erectile dysfunction, infertility, loss of control of the functions of the digestive organs and bladder.

Causes and accompanying symptoms of pain syndrome

The main causes of pain in osteochondrosis:

• Compression of nerve endings when discs are displaced;
• Muscle spasms;
• Compression of blood vessels;
• Inflammatory processes in the soft tissues surrounding the vertebrae.

The most common location of pain is the lumbar region of the back. This is the most mobile part of the spine: it bears the main load during physical activity and heavy lifting. In the sacral zone there are the main nerve plexuses and parts of the spinal cord that control the internal organs.

Complications often occur cauda equina syndrome- inflammation of the nerve endings of the lumbar region. This syndrome is accompanied by severe pain in the lower back. They are partly due to reflex muscle tension. In order to reduce pain, the body tries to limit muscle activity, which leads to muscle spasm. Constant tension contributes to the accumulation of lactic acid in muscle tissue, which also increases pain symptoms.

Vertebral artery syndrome is often diagnosed in the cervical region. Impaired blood supply to the brain causes headaches of various locations (parietal, occipital, temporal). Since the pain is referred, conventional analgesics do not alleviate the condition. Other signs of compression of the vertebral artery are cervicalgia, reflex pain in the neck and arms.

Associated signs of pain:

• Tingling in the limbs:
• Numbness of certain parts of the body, loss of sensitivity;
• Limitation of range of motion;
• Muscular atrophy;
• Feeling of constant fatigue;
• Reduced performance.

Coughing, sudden movements, sneezing, laughter - all these factors increase pain or provoke its occurrence.

How to eliminate pain from osteochondrosis

How to eliminate pain from osteochondrosis? Most people will answer unequivocally - medications. On the one hand, this is true: analgesics play a certain role in pain relief. But medications provide only a short-term effect. Such treatment is purely symptomatic and does not affect the true causes of the disease.

Constantly numbing pain with anesthetics is a fundamentally wrong tactic. Qualified doctors use medications only at the initial stage of treatment. Further therapy depends on the stage of the disease, the current condition of the patient and other related circumstances.

After eliminating the acute stage of the disease, other treatment methods are necessarily practiced - physiotherapy, professional massage, therapeutic exercises, reflexology, osteopathy, complex sanatorium-resort therapy. By stimulating blood circulation and metabolism, strengthening the muscle frame and ligaments, we thereby prevent further degenerative processes and prevent the occurrence of new pain.

Non-drug help at home

Even at home, in the absence of medications, there are ways, if not to completely relieve the pain, then at least to alleviate the patient’s condition. There are special body positions that reduce painful manifestations and provide motor rest to the affected area.

For cervical osteochondrosis, resting on a special orthopedic pillow helps. It is important to ensure complete immobilization of the cervical region, so the pillow should be sufficiently hard and rigid. It's better to lie on your back. It's great if you have an orthopedic collar. Such devices can be purchased at medical equipment stores or made with your own hands from thick cardboard and soft fabric.

When pain is localized in the lumbar region, there are several options for correct positioning of the body to relieve pain:

• Lying on your back, bend your knees and hips (you can put a pillow under your knees for comfort);
• Lying on your side, bend your legs and pull them towards your chin (you need to put a small pillow under your head to align the axis of the spine).

For non-inflammatory pain, gentle heating of the affected area is allowed. You can use a warm heating pad, or simply cover your back with a woolen scarf or blanket. Complete rest relaxes the muscles and partially relieves spasm.

Medicines to relieve pain and inflammation

Inflammatory processes in the nerve roots require the mandatory use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. This is a fairly extensive group of drugs, represented by various dosage forms - ointments, tablets, injection solutions. The most popular drugs are Ibuprofen, Diclofenac, ointments Voltaren, Fastum and others.

Local painkillers are also used - Finalgon, Capsicam: these ointments, in addition to the analgesic effect, accelerate blood flow and metabolism. There are complex medications (chondroprotectors) that partially restore cartilage tissue and slow down its destruction.

They try to prescribe perioral medications as rarely as possible: any medication, in addition to its beneficial effect, has side effects. The most popular and in demand tablet drugs are Diclofenac, Nimesulide, Ibuprofen, Ketalong, Movalis.

Such drugs are often prescribed in a course of 5-7 days (1 tablet three times a day). In the absence of a therapeutic effect, more radical treatment methods are required.

Clinical therapy

In hospitals, advanced cases of osteochondrosis with severe pain are treated with medicinal injections. The most effective method of this type is novocaine blockade. This method of pain relief is close to local anesthesia. When injected, the medicine penetrates directly into the nerve endings and blocks pain signals entering the brain.

Blockade is an effective, but exclusively symptomatic method of therapy. The injections do not cure the disease itself, but only stop its manifestations. Often such a procedure is prescribed for diagnostic purposes - doctors need to find out which nerve is inflamed and gives pain symptoms.

Drug blockade as a method of therapy has certain advantages:

• Fast-acting (analgesic effect occurs within just a few minutes);
• Minimal penetration of the drug into the general bloodstream (reducing side effects on the entire body);
• Possibility of frequent use (if necessary).

In addition to analgesics, to enhance the healing effect, antispasmodics, decongestants and substances that stimulate trophism (nutrition) and blood supply to the affected area are sometimes introduced into the body. Intramuscular administration of vitamin preparations is allowed.

The most relevant medications used for blockades: Lidocaine, Novocaine (anesthetics), Hydrocortisone (corticosteroid anti-inflammatory drug), B vitamins, ATP (for cell nutrition), Lidaza. Blockades can be epidural (made directly into the vertebral structures), paravertebral (injected into the surrounding tissues).

Other types of clinical therapy for the treatment of pain: medicinal electrophoresis or phonophoresis, magnetic therapy, hypothermia (exposure to cold), paraffin, ozokerite applications, kinesiotaping (application of therapeutic patches), reflexology - acupuncture.

It is impossible to find out on your own what causes lower back pain. A lumbago in the back, scientifically speaking, lumbago, is felt in the lumbar region, accompanied by muscle spasms that aggravate the pathology. Acute unbearable pain in the lower back has different causes, lasting from a couple of minutes to several months. The patient gets used to the painful condition, pain in the spine becomes part of life. Without consulting a doctor, your own health worsens and reduces your chances of recovery.

Pain occurs in the middle and mature age group. Stress, hypothermia, and physical exertion of an unprepared body cause pain and limited action. Back pain in the lumbar region is divided into two categories:

• Primary;
• Secondary.

The first is caused by pathologies of the spine: atrophy of ligaments, problems of tendons, intervertebral discs. Accompanied by pinched nerves, subsequent pain in the lumbar region. Osteochondrosis affects bone and cartilage tissues, leading to dystrophy. Spondyloarthrosis affects the joints between the vertebrae, which are responsible for the performance and flexibility of the spine.

In case of acute pain, problems cannot be excluded: osteomalacia, diseases that disrupt metabolism, osteoporosis.

Fractured vertebrae are felt, and infection of the lower back affects the discs between the spine with tuberculosis, epidural abscess, and brucellosis. In stroke pathologies, pain is felt in the sacral spine.

Lumbar pain is divided into three types: chronic stage, acute, and intermittent.

The pain is sharp

• on the left behind or on the right is caused by a muscle strain. Movement restrictions appear, there is no discomfort in the legs or groin area;
• Fractured vertebrae due to excessive bending of the back or falls cause acute pain in the lower back. A patient with cancer, Cushing's disease, Paget's disease, hyperparathyroidism, osteoporosis is susceptible to fracture of the vertebrae without external pressure, accompanied by sharp pain in the lower back on the left or right;
• Displacement of the intervertebral discs limits movement and causes pain in the lower back on the right;
• Instant pain may be a consequence of facet syndrome. The pathology does not affect the disc, but, affecting the compressed root emerging from the spinal canal, it causes more unpleasant sensations. Pain in the lower back on the right makes movement difficult and limits performance;
• Sharp pain in the lower back occurs due to an epidural abscess. The disease is diagnosed and treatment is provided immediately. Inflammation of the thoracic region of the spine causes pain when pressing and tapping, radiating to the lower back;
• With lower back pain, diseases of the hip joint, for example, coxarthrosis, are reflected in pain in the lower back on the left, buttocks and lower extremities to the knees.

Chronic pain

• The effect on the spine is deforming spondylosis, which increases the volume of bones, harms the roots of the spine, and narrows the canal. Weakness of the legs, numbness, and other neurological symptoms cause the occurrence of intermittent claudication;
• (anklosing spondyloarthrosis) of initial degree limits the patient’s movements, especially in the morning, reducing the performance of the thoracic region during breathing. X-ray allows you to record changes in the sacroiliac joints, which exert a destructive force on the spinal region;
• Oncology. Tumors, metastases, metabolic disorders. Spinal cord tumor, which includes meningioma, neurofibroma, lipoma;
• Osteomyelitis affects the sacrum, causing aching pain. It is checked by x-ray of bone tissue, skin test with tuberculin, ESR is determined for the presence or absence of tuberculosis bacteria, staphylococci, and other carriers.

Intermittent pain

Pathologies with suddenly appearing pain, felt in the left and right parts of the spine in the lumbar region, do not hinder movements, and it is difficult to determine exactly where the pain syndrome is localized with non-increasing intensity. To the question of what to do when the lumbar region sometimes hurts, there is only one answer - seek qualified medical help.

Organ diseases

Problems of the hip organs, lower and upper abdominal cavity, are reflected in pain in different areas of the lower back. The actions of the spine are not constrained, there are no local symptoms, and pain does not increase. The following diseases are more common:

• Types of tumors related to the gastric region, pancreas, colon, duodenum;
• Pathologies called diverticulitis, ulcerative colitis;
• Pathologies of the pelvic organs in the chronic stage. Do not forget about uterine or ovarian carcinoma, endometriosis;
• Renal colic, which develops when stones move into the kidney tissue. It is felt when it comes out through the urinary tract. Severe pain from stretching the walls with large stones;
• In the male half of the population, manifestations are caused by purulent prostatitis, certain testicular anomalies;
• The lumbar region and thoracic region experience pain with dissecting aortic aneurysm;
• The appendix, located atypically, leads to pain in the lower back and back. With inflammation, pain is felt on the right and in the lower back. The patient needs emergency medical care.

Treatment methods

Rest in bed and peace are the key to a speedy recovery. It is important to avoid rapid movements when straightening, extending, and do everything slowly. Lie on a surface of maximum hardness, turning a standard mattress into an orthopedic mattress, using a cardboard board or a wooden sheet. When going to the toilet, use crutches and a special belt, which stabilizes the lumbar region.

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Drugs

Increased pain occurs with reflex tension of the muscles affecting the damaged area. Tolerating pain is harmful to the lower back; this is one of the most important rules of recovery, so painkillers should be on hand.

• Sedalgin;
• Baralgin;
• Analgin;
• Paracetamol.

If the drugs do not help after half an hour or a little more, the dose is repeated. When the method does not work, strong remedies are taken to achieve the effect, but no longer than 2-3 times:

• Tramal;
• Ketorol;
• Diclofen;
• Trigan;
• Solpadeine.

No-spa allows you to relieve muscle spasms during severe pain in the lower back; against the swelling of the pinched root, a herbal infusion and a diuretic (Vershpiron, Diacarb, Furosemide) are used. Vitamin complexes with B12, B6, C will be added to the affected area. They prefer minerals: phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, manganese. Relieve inflammation with Ibuprofen, a rectal suppository.

Ointments

To the question of how to relieve acute pain in the lower back on the right or other side, there are several answer options:

• Cream containing horse chestnut;
• Products containing piroxicam, butadione or voltaren;
• Medicines – Aescusan, Anestezin, menthol preparations.

After three to four hours, rub in the ointment, giving preference to:

• Finalgon;
• Dolgit-cream;
• Ointments with snake or bee venom. (Vipratox, Viprosal, Viperalgin, Virapin, Apizartron).

There are contraindications for pregnant women, people who have problems with the liver, kidneys, and diabetes. The course is carried out for 5-6 days, using medications two or three times. If an allergic reaction is detected on the skin, moisten cotton wool with vodka, alcohol infusion, wipe off the product, take Tavegil, Claritin.

Massage

Self-massage is performed in a sitting, standing or lying position. It raises the tone of the whole body, improves kidney function, and reduces the level of acute lower back pain.

• The palms are warmed up by joining together, pressing between the knees, and actively rubbing. They are applied to the lumbar region, warmth penetrates the body. The procedure is repeated five times;
• Warm palms are applied to the lower back, thumbs are on the sides, pointing down. Others lie down obliquely, the area warms up;
• The lumbar region is massaged with the pads of the fingers from top to bottom. The fingers are placed perpendicular to the vertebrae of the spine and slowly moved a couple of centimeters to the side;
• Clench your fists and move the back of your hand along the crest of the iliac bone;
• Place the back of your left hand on your lower back, press with your right hand, and knead the spine area using circular movements.
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And treatment at home will only have an effect when the diagnosis is correct. If, after a full examination, the cause of the pain is not clear, then home treatment can be not only useless, but also dangerous.

Causes of discomfort

Diseases that cause lower back pain:

• sciatica;
• cold;
• scoliosis;
• osteochondrosis;
• hernia;
• arthritis;
• radiculitis;
• atherosclerosis;
• adnexitis, menopause (in women);
• epididymitis, prostatitis (in men);
• appendicitis;
• diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and kidneys;
• pancreatitis, cholecystitis;
• obesity;
• cancerous tumors in the last stages;
• chronic fatigue syndrome;
• lumbago (“lumbago”) - a sharp, acute pain in the lower back.

Urgent help

The choice of treatment measures depends on the cause of pain. If the reason is still unclear, and the pain appeared suddenly, then it is recommended to take a horizontal position (lie on your stomach) and lie there until the pain subsides a little. Then slowly roll over onto your back and bend first one and then the other leg at the knees. Lie down until the pain goes away completely.

You need to stand up from the side, minimally straining your back. You can’t get to your feet right away; you need to stay in a sitting position for a while. Be sure to take painkillers and see a doctor.

First aid for lumbago

First aid for lumbago is to ensure rest - do not lift anything heavy, do not sit in one position for a long time, lie down more, do light exercises. If you immediately take measures to eliminate it, it goes away within 3 weeks. If the pain does not go away for a long time, then you should think about a comprehensive examination. In this case, you can use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (tablets, ointments), which have a pronounced anti-inflammatory, analgesic and mild warming effect. For example, Ibuprofen, Diclofenac, Meloxicam.

Traditional medicines and folk recipes

According to studies, the best results in the fight against lumbar pain can be achieved if muscle relaxants (Baclofen, Tizanidine) are used together with NSAIDs, which relieve muscle tension and improve the mobility of the spine and joints.

In addition, they often resort to traditional medicine recipes, for example, compresses. To prepare them, use various herbs, horseradish, radish, mustard powder, burdock, bodyaga, horse chestnut, rendered lard, camphor oil, garlic, dough, etc. The ingredients need to be crushed and the mixture applied to the lower back, covering the top with a warm cloth or scarf. But first you need to make sure that warming procedures are not contraindicated.

Physiotherapy

Therapeutic exercises are an integral part of therapy. With the help of exercise therapy, you can significantly strengthen the muscular system, relieve pain, release pinched nerves by increasing the space between the vertebrae, improve blood circulation, normalize metabolic processes, and avoid congestion.

1. The exercises are performed smoothly, without sudden movements or jerks.
2. The training room should be spacious and well ventilated.
3. Clothing should not be tight or restrict movement.
4. The exercise is done while inhaling, and returning to the starting position while exhaling.
5. The load and range of motion increase gradually.
6. Monitoring your pulse and well-being is mandatory.
7. If any unpleasant sensations appear, classes should be stopped.

During pregnancy, nephrological and pulmonary diseases, gastritis, ulcers, spinal injuries and cancerous tumors, exercise therapy is contraindicated. For diabetes, hypertension, and a tendency to bleed, exercises and loads must be selected correctly. During the period when the disease worsens, the set of classes is canceled.

The simplest but most effective exercise is hanging, when a person grabs the bar with his hands and lifts his legs off the ground. In this position, the spine is maximally extended, and the interdiscal spaces increase, releasing pinched nerves. In this case, the healing effect is due to the person’s own weight.

An alternative to this exercise is walking in a knee-elbow position. You need to get on all fours, arch your back and, breathing deeply, walk for about 20 minutes, but no longer.

The balance of the load on the muscles of the thighs, buttocks, and abs is achieved using exercises from a standing position. This could be raising your legs, bending, etc.

These exercises are universal. A more detailed complex is selected by the doctor based on the patient’s disease. Classes should be held at least 3-4 times a week. To achieve the best results, consistency, systematicity and regularity are important.

Massage

Massage is an excellent way to quickly and effectively get rid of many diseases of the musculoskeletal system. The correct technique and experience of the massage therapist are important.

The technique is selected individually for each case, and if the doctor makes a mistake in choosing the technique, then such a massage can be harmful.

Also, you should not resort to any type of massage when the disease is in the acute stage, because there is a risk of damage to organs and tissues. It is also not recommended to use this method for people who have an intervertebral hernia, as well as in the postoperative period.

It is recommended to resort to massage for osteoporosis, osteochondrosis and other changes and disorders in tissues. It will help relieve pain, reduce inflammation, reduce swelling, and improve blood circulation.

To eliminate pain in the lumbar region, various techniques are used, such as vibration, stroking, squeezing, rubbing, kneading, patting, etc.

Basic Rules:

1. it is possible, but in this case the effect is only on the upper layers of the skin, so it is more appropriate to contact a specialist who, using special techniques, affects the muscle and connective tissue at a deeper level.
2. You cannot do a massage without using various oils and creams, which often contain analgesic and anti-inflammatory ingredients, because skin may be damaged.
3. Any mechanical impact always begins with tissue heating.
4. Massage should be performed daily for 8–10 days.
5. For women, the optimal time for procedures is the middle of the menstrual cycle.
6. Sometimes it is recommended to take a hot shower or visit a sauna to warm up the tissues before starting the procedure.
7. Massage courses must be regular - at least once every 6 months.

conclusions

Diseases of the lumbar back need to be treated comprehensively - with medications, massage, exercise therapy, physiotherapy, reflexology, manual therapy. Treatment is prescribed by a doctor after a comprehensive examination and clarification of the causes of pain.

Osteochondrosis is a degenerative disease of the spine, one of the most common human pathologies. The disease is characterized by gradual destruction of the cartilage tissue of the vertebrae: as the disease progresses, ligaments, muscles, and bone structures are involved in destructive processes.

The most indicative sign of pathology is back pain of various types - sharp, aching, acute, periodic and constant. It is useful for all patients with degenerative diseases of the spine to know how to relieve pain in osteochondrosis and eliminate inflammation in the acute stage of the disease.

Pain in degenerative diseases of the spine

Pain is the main, but not the only symptom of osteochondrosis. The destruction of cartilage tissue itself is not accompanied by pain, especially at the initial stage of the disease. Painful sensations occur when pathological transformations affect nerve endings, muscles and ligaments.

Disease processes lead to loss of elasticity and mobility of the intervertebral discs. At the progressive stages of osteochondrosis, cracks appear in the discs, and the fibrous ring changes its anatomical position. These processes lead to the occurrence of protrusions and herniations of intervertebral discs: these are the main and most dangerous complications of the disease.

Near the intervertebral discs are nerve endings, blood vessels and the spinal cord itself. Deformed discs compress nerve endings and injure them. This process is the primary cause of pain symptoms, inflammation, spasms of muscles and ligaments. Back pain often radiates to other parts of the body, since the nerve endings of the spinal cord are connected to all systems of the body.

Pain symptoms in lesions of various parts of the spine are extremely diverse. In the progressive stages of the disease, in addition to back pain, patients may experience neck pain, headaches, cervical, shoulder, stomach and intestinal pain. Unpleasant symptoms occur in the legs, feet, gluteal muscles, and pelvic organs (often with impaired functionality).

Signs intensify with:

• Physical activity;
• Fatigue;
• Staying in one position for a long time;
• Stress;
• Hypothermia;
• Infectious processes in the body.

With severe compression of the spinal cord and blood vessels, serious pathologies of internal organs are possible. Compression in the cervical and lumbar regions is especially dangerous. Often, the consequence of pathological processes in advanced osteochondrosis are such dangerous diseases as stroke, erectile dysfunction, infertility, loss of control of the functions of the digestive organs and bladder.

Causes and accompanying symptoms of pain syndrome

The main causes of pain in osteochondrosis:

• Compression of nerve endings when discs are displaced;
• Muscle spasms;
• Compression of blood vessels;
• Inflammatory processes in the soft tissues surrounding the vertebrae.

The most common location of pain is the lumbar region of the back. This is the most mobile part of the spine: it bears the main load during physical activity and heavy lifting. In the sacral zone there are the main nerve plexuses and parts of the spinal cord that control the internal organs.

Complications often occur cauda equina syndrome- inflammation of the nerve endings of the lumbar region. This syndrome is accompanied by severe pain in the lower back. They are partly due to reflex muscle tension. In order to reduce pain, the body tries to limit muscle activity, which leads to muscle spasm. Constant tension contributes to the accumulation of lactic acid in muscle tissue, which also increases pain symptoms.

Vertebral artery syndrome is often diagnosed in the cervical region. Impaired blood supply to the brain causes headaches of various locations (parietal, occipital, temporal). Since the pain is referred, conventional analgesics do not alleviate the condition. Other signs of compression of the vertebral artery are cervicalgia, reflex pain in the neck and arms.

Associated signs of pain:

• Tingling in the limbs:
• Numbness of certain parts of the body, loss of sensitivity;
• Limitation of range of motion;
• Muscular atrophy;
• Feeling of constant fatigue;
• Reduced performance.

Coughing, sudden movements, sneezing, laughter - all these factors increase pain or provoke its occurrence.

How to eliminate pain from osteochondrosis

How to eliminate pain from osteochondrosis? Most people will answer unequivocally - medications. On the one hand, this is true: analgesics play a certain role in pain relief. But medications provide only a short-term effect. Such treatment is purely symptomatic and does not affect the true causes of the disease.

Constantly numbing pain with anesthetics is a fundamentally wrong tactic. Qualified doctors use medications only at the initial stage of treatment. Further therapy depends on the stage of the disease, the current condition of the patient and other related circumstances.

After eliminating the acute stage of the disease, other treatment methods are necessarily practiced - physiotherapy, professional massage, therapeutic exercises, reflexology, osteopathy, complex sanatorium-resort therapy. By stimulating blood circulation and metabolism, strengthening the muscle frame and ligaments, we thereby prevent further degenerative processes and prevent the occurrence of new pain.

Non-drug help at home

Even at home, in the absence of medications, there are ways, if not to completely relieve the pain, then at least to alleviate the patient’s condition. There are special body positions that reduce painful manifestations and provide motor rest to the affected area.

For cervical osteochondrosis, resting on a special orthopedic pillow helps. It is important to ensure complete immobilization of the cervical region, so the pillow should be sufficiently hard and rigid. It's better to lie on your back. It's great if you have an orthopedic collar. Such devices can be purchased at medical equipment stores or made with your own hands from thick cardboard and soft fabric.

When pain is localized in the lumbar region, there are several options for correct positioning of the body to relieve pain:

• Lying on your back, bend your knees and hips (you can put a pillow under your knees for comfort);
• Lying on your side, bend your legs and pull them towards your chin (you need to put a small pillow under your head to align the axis of the spine).

For non-inflammatory pain, gentle heating of the affected area is allowed. You can use a warm heating pad, or simply cover your back with a woolen scarf or blanket. Complete rest relaxes the muscles and partially relieves spasm.

Medicines to relieve pain and inflammation

Inflammatory processes in the nerve roots require the mandatory use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. This is a fairly extensive group of drugs, represented by various dosage forms - ointments, tablets, injection solutions. The most popular drugs are Ibuprofen, Diclofenac, ointments Voltaren, Fastum and others.

Local painkillers are also used - Finalgon, Capsicam: these ointments, in addition to the analgesic effect, accelerate blood flow and metabolism. There are complex medications (chondroprotectors) that partially restore cartilage tissue and slow down its destruction.

They try to prescribe perioral medications as rarely as possible: any medication, in addition to its beneficial effect, has side effects. The most popular and in demand tablet drugs are Diclofenac, Nimesulide, Ibuprofen, Ketalong, Movalis.

Such drugs are often prescribed in a course of 5-7 days (1 tablet three times a day). In the absence of a therapeutic effect, more radical treatment methods are required.

Clinical therapy

In hospitals, advanced cases of osteochondrosis with severe pain are treated with medicinal injections. The most effective method of this type is novocaine blockade. This method of pain relief is close to local anesthesia. When injected, the medicine penetrates directly into the nerve endings and blocks pain signals entering the brain.

Blockade is an effective, but exclusively symptomatic method of therapy. The injections do not cure the disease itself, but only stop its manifestations. Often such a procedure is prescribed for diagnostic purposes - doctors need to find out which nerve is inflamed and gives pain symptoms.

Drug blockade as a method of therapy has certain advantages:

• Fast-acting (analgesic effect occurs within just a few minutes);
• Minimal penetration of the drug into the general bloodstream (reducing side effects on the entire body);
• Possibility of frequent use (if necessary).

In addition to analgesics, to enhance the healing effect, antispasmodics, decongestants and substances that stimulate trophism (nutrition) and blood supply to the affected area are sometimes introduced into the body. Intramuscular administration of vitamin preparations is allowed.

The most relevant medications used for blockades: Lidocaine, Novocaine (anesthetics), Hydrocortisone (corticosteroid anti-inflammatory drug), B vitamins, ATP (for cell nutrition), Lidaza. Blockades can be epidural (made directly into the vertebral structures), paravertebral (injected into the surrounding tissues).

Other types of clinical therapy for the treatment of pain: medicinal electrophoresis or phonophoresis, magnetic therapy, hypothermia (exposure to cold), paraffin, ozokerite applications, kinesiotaping (application of therapeutic patches), reflexology - acupuncture.