Osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is a serious degenerative-dystrophic pathology that cannot yet be completely cured.This occurs against the background of the destruction of the intervertebral discs, displacement and protrusion of the vertebrae.When diagnosing the disease, doctors take into account that the signs of thoracic osteochondrosis differ in women and men.This is explained by hormonal fluctuations in the female body.Women often diet, wear tight, high-heeled shoes, and have difficulty handling domestic conflicts.This affects the development, course and progression of pathology of the musculoskeletal system.
Differences between female and male clinical manifestations
The diagnosis of thoracic osteochondrosis in women is more difficult due to hormonal characteristics.In young patients, it is subject to frequent monthly fluctuations.In women during natural menopause, the production of hormones in the body decreases.This can cause the development of pathologies;they must be differentiated.For men, the typical course of the disease is characteristic, which allows it to be detected in time and treatment can begin immediately.
The clinical picture of thoracic osteochondrosis in women includes many signs that are so specific that it is sometimes difficult to classify them among the symptoms of pathologies of the musculoskeletal system.Doctors identify the following characteristic differences between the male and female clinical picture and the further progression of thoracic osteochondrosis:
- Clinical manifestations in women occur a little earlier.This is due to a more fragile spine that is vulnerable to negative factors, as well as increased sensitivity to painful sensations;
- the intensity of pain in the thoracic region, stiffness varies depending on the menstrual cycle.This is explained by the production of estrogens in the body - steroid sex hormones.They reduce the intensity of pain due to thinning of the intervertebral discs and spasms of the neck muscles.Therefore, during the initial diagnosis, based on patient complaints, women are not always able to informatively describe the sensations that bother them;
- In humans, thoracic osteochondrosis rarely causes the development of a concomitant disease.And women can experience several pathologies at the same time.In this case, osteochondrosis can provoke the development of a disease not related to the musculoskeletal system.Conversely, an endocrine or metabolic disorder leads to the destruction of cartilage tissue;
- For the treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis, women are prescribed drugs that are used in the treatment of men in rare cases.These are antipsychotics, tranquilizers, sedatives.The psycho-emotional state of women is more labile, so symptoms include anxiety, increased agitation and insomnia.Sometimes, after learning that the disease is incurable, depression occurs, which can only be eliminated by a course of antidepressants.
Women are more likely to experience headaches.But unlike men, they do not suffer from an increase in the intensity of clinical manifestations during the day due to the action of estrogens.
An interesting fact is that as the pathology progresses, the female libido may increase.This is the effect of steroid hormones, which are intensively produced in the body to suppress painful sensations.And the sexual desire of men is significantly reduced due to a disorder of the innervation of the prostate.
Typical signs of the disease
Patients usually complain to doctors about pain in the shoulder blades, which intensifies when bending or rotating the body.It radiates down the sides, lower back and even the forearms.The pain is felt along the intercostal nerve, its intensity increases with coughing, laughing and sneezing.Referred pain complicates the diagnosis and requires additional research and consultations with an endocrinologist, cardiologist, mammologist and gynecologist.
The characteristic signs are stiffness, a feeling of constraint.When moving or changing body position, specific clicks are heard, usually associated with the movement of the vertebrae relative to each other.Typical symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis in women also include the following clinical manifestations:
- feeling of “creeping goosebumps”, decreased tactility in the chest or abdomen, numbness of certain areas of the skin;
- the appearance of signs of intercostal neuralgia.When lifting weights, increased physical activity or hypothermia, sharp, piercing pain appears in the rib area, spreading to the chest and sides;
- development of persistent back pain - a set of painful sensations of varying intensity in the back.They can occur even when inhaling, intensify when climbing stairs, doing housework;
- muscle spasms, limiting the range of movement.Muscle spasms occur in response to compression by an osteophyte (bone growth) or inflammatory swelling of sensitive nerve endings in soft tissues.
Thoracic osteochondrosis is characterized by constant tension in the muscles located near the spine.This is detected by palpation during the initial examination, as is pain at the nerve endings.There is a change in the woman's posture and gait.She tries to keep her back straight to avoid the pain.But with grade 3 pathology, a curvature of the spine is already noted against the background of the development of scoliosis and a decrease in the distance between the vertebrae.
Specific symptoms of pathology
Thoracic osteochondrosis is rarely diagnosed.This part of the spine is equipped with a powerful muscular corset, and its strong adhesion to the ribs allows it to withstand intense static and dynamic loads.Doctors often refer to thoracic osteochondrosis as a “chameleon disease.”To detect it, differential diagnosis is necessary not only for pathologies of the musculoskeletal system (arthritis, spondyloarthrosis), but also for diseases of internal organs.
Patients often complain not to a vertebrologist or neurologist, but to a cardiologist, nephrologist, gastroenterologist or gynecologist.The fact is that the symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis are disguised as clinical manifestations of angina, cholecystitis and renal colic.And an attack of intercostal neuralgia is very similar to a myocardial infarction or appendicitis.What atypical signs of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine in women can occur in remission or relapse:
- pain in the heart area.Mistaken for an attack of angina or myocardial infarction.Cardiologists exclude cardiac pathologies after studying the results of the ECG and other instrumental tests;
- pain in the mammary glands.Uncomfortable sensations do not disappear for a long time and their intensity does not decrease.After the patient contacts a gynecologist or mammologist, an ultrasound of the mammary glands is performed to exclude benign and malignant neoplasms;
- pain in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT).A woman turns to a gastroenterologist after experiencing constant or recurring pain in the right hypochondrium or epigastrium.When diagnosing gastritis, cholecystitis and ulcerative lesions, various laboratory and instrumental studies are carried out;
- pain in the lower abdomen.They often occur due to compression of the nerve endings in the spinal cord.Painful sensations and urinary disorders are similar to signs of diseases of the genitourinary system.Urologists or gynecologists differentiate osteochondrosis from pyelonephritis, glomerulonephritis and uterine fibroids.
Despite the increase in libido caused by the production of estrogen, dysfunction of the reproductive system is detected in patients.Anorgasmia (lack of orgasm) develops against the background of compression of the nerves innervating the lower part of the thoracic region of the back.
The narrow localization of pathologies at the level of internal organs and the common innervation cause very specific clinical manifestations.Sometimes they disguise themselves as strokes, kidney failure, hepatic colic and even dental diseases.The medical literature describes cases of extraction of treated teeth due to intense and constant pain at their base.Subsequently, the cause of the pain syndrome was established - neurological symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis.
Vertebral signs are more typical for cervical pathology, but are sometimes detected in severe cases of thoracic pathology.Destructive and degenerative processes in the vertebrae and discs cause sharp jumps in blood pressure, dizziness, impaired coordination of movements, headaches and tinnitus.There have been cases of decreased visual acuity.
Psycho-emotional disorders (tearing eyes, anxiety, mood swings) are diagnosed in many patients.Health problems, the announcement of an upcoming surgical operation and a reduction in physical activity sometimes become causes of depression.
How to eliminate the symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis
Methods for treating degenerative-dystrophic pathology in women and men are the same.The destroyed cartilage tissue cannot be restored, therefore the main goals of treatment are to reduce the severity of symptoms and prevent the spread of pathology.
When choosing a method, the doctor takes into account the degree of destructive changes, the presence of an inflammatory process in soft tissues and the stage of thoracic osteochondrosis.Women are prescribed antidepressants, tranquilizers and sedatives much more often than men.During natural menopause, hormone replacement therapy may be prescribed, which is also necessary for the prevention of osteoporosis (low bone mass).
To eliminate pain due to thoracic osteochondrosis in women, drugs of various clinical and pharmacological groups are used:
- nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)in tablets.After a week of taking it and feeling better, women are prescribed external forms of NSAIDs;
- hormonal drugs.Glucocorticosteroids are generally used to block medications;
- muscle relaxers.Relaxes skeletal muscles, relieves painful muscle spasms;
- chondroprotectors.Partially regenerates damaged hyaline cartilage and, after a few weeks of use, they have an analgesic effect.
Physiotherapeutic procedures are actively used in the treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis: UHF therapy, laser therapy, magnetic therapy, applications with ozokerite, paraffin, bischofite.Patients receive massages, physiotherapy, swimming and yoga.
If a woman does not seek medical help, diseases of internal organs may soon develop.They are caused by the protrusion of the intervertebral disc into the narrowed spinal canal and the formation of hernias.Deterioration of the spine leads to compression of the spinal cord, then the occurrence of renal, hepatic, gastrointestinal or cardiovascular pathologies.