The human neck, like any animal, is an amazing part of the body, quite fragile but strong.
The cervical spine, along with all the muscles and ligaments, holds and moves the skull, absorbs shock when walking, protects the brain from concussions, protects the blood vessels that feed it, and also protects the spinal cord.
When your neck hurts, the reasons can be quite varied.Some may go away on their own within a few days, while some can cause chronic illness and pain.
Why does the pain happen?
The most common cause of neck pain is poor posture.With hunchback, the head no longer occupies the correct position above the body and moves forward.In this position, the muscles and ligaments in the neck are under more stress.The development of stooping and neck pain is facilitated by prolonged work without changing posture, sleeping on soft beds or high pillows and prolonged static loads.
Other causes of neck pain include head injuries, traffic accidents, or sports.When accelerating suddenly and then braking, the cervical spine will move like a whip.As a result, ligaments and muscles may become overstretched, displacement or compression fractures in the cervical vertebrae may occur, and intervertebral hernias may form.
Neck pain can occur as a secondary manifestation of other diseases.For example, during a heart attack, the heart attack causes severe pain, which spreads along the nerve plexuses to the upper limbs, chest and neck.Neck pain during a heart attack is just part of a larger set of symptoms - shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, vomiting.If your neck or jaw hurts or there are other signs of a heart attack, you should call an ambulance immediately.
Neck pain is also considered a diagnostic sign of meningitis.With this disease, the neck muscles become hypertonic, that is, they become rigid.When I try to tilt my head towards my chest, the back of my neck hurts.
Pain in the cervical spine due to rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, fibromyalgia, spondylosis and osteoarthritis, herniation or protrusion, compression of nerve roots or spinal cord due to infectious edema, abscesses, tumors or benign tumors.
Special case
Degenerative disease
Osteochondrosis, in other words, a degenerative disorder in the intervertebral discs, leads to a person constantly experiencing neck pain.This is usually a mild ache, often accompanied by numbness and pain in the shoulder and head areas.
The neck area affected by osteonecrosis can cause cerebral artery syndrome.With a decrease in the distance between the vertebrae in this area, compression damage occurs to the vertebral arteries passing through the foramina of the transverse processes of the cervical vertebrae.Pressure on blood vessels reduces blood flow to the brain, causing dizziness and reduced vision and hearing.On the other hand, mechanical stimulation of the artery with pressure from the vertebrae causes a reflex contraction, manifested as a burning, throbbing pain in the head.
Treatment
If your neck constantly hurts due to osteoarthritis, then therapy begins with eliminating the pain syndrome.The second mandatory treatment direction is to prevent the degenerative process in the cervical vertebrae.
Pain relief can be achieved using the following groups of drugs:
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - directly block the flow of pain signaling mediators;
- muscle relaxants – eliminate reflex muscle spasms arising from severe pain;
- sedatives – calm and inhibit the nervous system and transmission of pain impulses, including (valerian, antidepressants, sleeping pills);
- vasodilator - helps eliminate vertebral artery syndrome and the pain associated with it.
To eliminate the cause of neck pain due to osteoarthritis, chondroprotective drugs are prescribed to prevent the destruction of cartilage and vertebrae, as well as multivitamin-mineral complexes.
Pain treatment also includes exercise therapy, physical therapy, massage, traction, acupressure, and compression therapy.During exacerbations, to reduce pain, the patient should wear a special necklace to protect the neck from possible excessive mobility.
Muscle pain
Neck pain can occur due to inflammation of the neck muscles, called myositis.Such pain needs to be distinguished from neuritis (inflammation of the nerve trunks accompanied by sensitivity disorders) and pain due to osteoarthritis.Myositis occurs suddenly, after exposure to risk factors - hypothermia, vibration, prolonged overexertion, especially with prolonged repetitive movements of the same type.
Cervical myositis is characterized by acute pain that occurs when the inflamed muscle contracts.The severity of the pain leads to difficulty performing certain types of movements.Usually, the long neck muscles on the anterolateral aspect or the sternocleidomastoid muscle are painful, which when contracted on both sides will pull the head backwards and when contracted on one side will rotate the head.The deep muscles that surround the spine and move the entire neck and back are also often inflamed.
When palpating the muscle, the tone increases and dense nodular areas are noted.Disruption of local microcirculation and nutrition leads to the gradual replacement of muscle cells by connective tissue.As a result, the neck muscles weaken, symmetry on both sides of the spine is disturbed, "torticollis" may appear, and the patient has difficulty keeping his head straight.
Treatment
Treatment begins with reducing the load on the neck.This is followed by a course of physiotherapy - UHF heating, electrophoresis with drugs, paraffin heating, ozokerite wrapping, diathermy, massage, acupuncture.Such procedures restore blood circulation in the neck muscles.Medications include vitamin B injections, anti-inflammatory and pain relievers, ointments and rubs.
Traditional treatment recommends using cabbage or burdock leaves as a pain-relieving compress, preparing an ointment from willow buds crushed in butter and rubbing from a mixture of turpentine with apple cider vinegar and egg yolk.The neck is also rubbed with lava oil and then wrapped.The main key to the success of any treatment is to rest the sore neck until its muscles are fully restored.Then you should start taking them “on task” through special exercises and massages.
Nerve root syndrome
Severe pain in the neck, spreading to the head muscles, shoulder muscles, and upper limbs, can occur when spinal nerve roots are compressed due to prolapse, protrusion or herniation of the disc.
With this disease, the inner core of the disc protrudes toward the spinal canal or its lateral horns.Hernia and its symptoms usually appear on one side.When pressure is created on the roots of the spinal nerves, a burning, throbbing pain appears in the nerve muscles (cervical lumbago).The patient feels numbness in the lower jaw, around the ears, back of the head, shoulder blades and arms.Dizziness and sharp pain in the neck appear when changing position from horizontal to vertical.The gradual protrusion of the disc core leads to injury to the surrounding tissues, causing inflammation and swelling.This sets the stage for inflammation of nerve endings with the development of radiculitis, and the mobility of the neck and upper limbs is gradually limited.Long-term compression of spinal nerves leads to paralysis or quadriplegia.
therapy
What to do if your neck hurts due to a hernia?At home, to relieve pain, analgesics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, hormonal drugs and muscle relaxants are used to reduce spasms.
In the hospital, severe neck pain is eliminated with the help of “blocks” - injections of painkillers into both sides of the spine.
Swelling and inflammation are eliminated with steroid medications, which can be injected directly into the hernia area.Muscle soreness is eliminated by using muscle relaxants.
In addition, to prevent further development of the hernia, I use drugs that strengthen cartilage tissue - chondroprotectors.
In many cases, therapeutic exercises and traction of the cervical spine help reduce mild protrusion or protrusion.Increasing the space between vertebrae helps "retract" the disc and reduce pressure on the nerves.
In the case of a true hernia with rupture of the annulus fibrosus and prolapse into the spinal canal, surgery is required.There are several ways to get rid of neck pain through surgery:
- anterior cervical discectomy – removes an excess piece of disc that is pressing on a spinal nerve;
- replace damaged discs with artificial joints, which helps protect the cervical spine from further destruction;
- microscopic laparoscopic excision using a posterior approach and removing small areas of the hernia through the laparoscope;
- Posterior cervical resection is through an incision in the back of the neck.The operating channel is specially expanded so that a squeeze situation does not develop in the future.
Tumor
If you feel constant pain in your neck, you may suspect the presence of a strange mass in this part.
Benign tumors (lipomas, fibromas, neuromas, osteomas, hemangiomas) usually have a regular and well-defined shape;they rarely cause pain.Discomfort is mainly related to the compression of surrounding tissues by the tumor.Malignant tumors (osteogenic sarcoma, myeloma, lymphoma or thyroid cancer) have no boundaries and have many metastases to adjacent tissues.Their destructive effect on organs causes painful sensations and deterioration of the general condition.The front of the neck can be painful due to cancer of the larynx, throat, oral cavity or thyroid gland.Patients have difficulty swallowing, swelling of the neck and face, and changes in voice.If the cervical spine is painful due to a bone tumor, this condition is often accompanied by damage to the spinal cord and nerve roots on the side of the spine, leading to paralysis.
Treatment
Treatment of tumor pain is primarily aimed at eliminating the cause - reducing or eliminating the tumor.For this purpose, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, sclerosis of the vessels feeding the tumor and surgical removal of pathological tumors are used.
Pain relief depends on the severity of the pain:
- weak medicine;
- moderate pain relievers;
- with increasing pain they turned to weak opium;
- In case of severe pain, pain relief is possible only with the help of opium.To enhance the analgesic effect of tumor-induced neck pain, antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, and corticosteroids are used.
Pay attention!Neck pain can occur for many reasons.In order not to miss serious diseases, you must first see a doctor to get advice about the condition of the pain and determine its exact origin.