Headache can not find the cause? Don't just think of it as a shoulder and neck problem, but to prevent cervical spine syndrome

As we grow older, the cervical spine undergoes degenerative changes and is prone to cervical spondylosis, which is a normal aging process. But now more and more middle-aged people, young people and even teenage students are suffering from cervical spondylosis, and cervical spondylosis is gradually developing in a younger trend, which has a serious impact on people's quality of life.

I. What are the serious degrees of cervical spine degeneration?

The symptoms of cervical spine have a term called cervical spine syndrome, then in fact, when you hear the syndrome, you know that it is very many symptoms, roughly divided into five categories.

The first major category is the most commonly heard one, which is the soreness of the neck muscles, which is relatively mild.

The second major category is nerve root compression and compression in the neck. No matter what the cause is, there is some compression and squeezing. The symptom is unilateral soreness in the upper arm, and the hand will feel sore and numb.

The third category is this compression to the spinal nerve. The nerve root nerve is a nerve that runs out of the spinal cord. If the nerve is pressed into the central nerve, it is the spinal nerve. This symptom is very serious, that is, it has caused the symptoms of the limbs, such as weakness, muscle atrophy. If the lower extremities are affected, walking is very unstable, often falling down, and balance is not good.

The fourth category is that in addition to the nerves in the neck, there are also blood vessels. If the spinal blood vessels are compressed, it will lead to poor perfusion in the brain, and there will be some headaches, or dizziness, tinnitus, etc. Therefore, the fourth category is some headache symptoms, and it is difficult to focus on which department.

The last category is the case I met, he is pressed to the sympathetic nerves on both sides of the cervical spine, then he will have some sympathetic nerve disorder symptoms, such as photophobia, unclear vision, and even nasal congestion, nasal discharge may be. In the case of the ears, it is tinnitus, and it is difficult to categorize what kind of problem it is. He will go to which department he feels uncomfortable, but every doctor will tell him that there seems to be nothing wrong.

Second, since it is divided into these five categories, how should it be treated?

The treatment part is conservative at the beginning, no matter which category it is. Conservative treatment is nothing but some medication, injection, or some electrotherapy, heat therapy, or some traction massage. Like the rehabilitation section pulling the neck for some people really effective, but these ways are to treat the symptoms but not the root table, are able to temporarily relieve your symptoms, but there is no way to completely cure. I think the most important conservative treatment should be to remind the patient that the posture of your head should not be wrong and should not tilt forward excessively, which causes the loss of the curvature of the anterior cervical convexity.

Third, who should consider surgery?

It is true that when we talk about cervical spine surgery, people generally feel very afraid that they will be paralyzed if they are not opened properly. In fact, nowadays, we have made great progress, and we use microscope to operate during the operation, so we can see clearly, and we can see clearly what is pressed into the spine. Most of the indications for incision are the occurrence of tertiary symptoms, that is, pressure on blood vessels or spinal nerves, or sympathetic nerves. Those symptoms are the numbness and weakness of the upper extremities that we just talked about, and although they will recover after surgery, it takes time, depending on how long the symptoms have been occurring. If you have been delayed for two or three years, perhaps the effect of surgery is not as good. If your symptoms have gotten to the point of incontinence, then this symptom will not necessarily recover.

So if there is really any discomfort, for patients with mild cervical discomfort and cervical spondylosis can be regulated by cervical exercises, hot compresses, massage and other therapies, but heavier cervical spondylosis is difficult to self-regulate and recover, patients should go to a regular hospital early and receive medication and surgery if necessary.