Damage to the thoracic spine is often mistaken for pathology of internal organs. The lungs, heart, as well as the mammary glands and stomach located here can also cause pain in this location. This is why it is often difficult for doctors to diagnose osteochondrosis of the thoracic region: symptoms in women are mistaken for mastopathy.
Thoracic osteochondrosis - symptoms and sensations
To begin with, it should be noted that osteochondrosis is the most common pathology of the spine. By its nature, it is a degenerative lesion of the discs between the vertebrae associated with dystrophy. Such processes lead to irreversible changes in the structure of the spine, which affects the functionality of the spinal column as a whole.
Due to the dense innervation and the presence of a large number of nerve roots, patients with osteochondrosis experience strong, sharp pain. At the same time, their nature and intensity can change. This complicates the diagnostic process: in order to distinguish thoracic osteochondrosis, symptoms and feelings in women are analyzed, excluding pathology of the mammary glands, heart and stomach.
The first signs of osteochondrosis in women
Among all the possible signs of damage to the spine, painful sensations come to the fore. Strong, painful pains that intensify at night, when staying in one position for a long time, are often the first to attract attention. Increased pain is also observed during physical activity with:
- bends;
- sharp turns to the side;
- prolonged physical, even low-intensity exercise;
- deep breathing;
- raising his hands up.
Some patients complain of a feeling of tightness in the chest area. If osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine is suspected, symptoms in women may be supplemented by numerous signs, namely:
- numbness of certain areas of the epidermis;
- feeling of coldness in the lower extremities;
- pain in the projection of the stomach and esophagus;
- disorders in the work of the gastrointestinal tract.
Degree of osteochondrosis
Symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis in women largely depend on the nature of degenerative changes. Taking them into account, the appropriate stages of the disease (degree) are distinguished:
- 1st degree - fixed when changes are observed in the disc core itself. Excessive loading leads to dehydration of the nucleus, which causes a decrease in the height of the disc and the development of cracks in the area of the annulus fibrosus. There is no pain, some women complain of slight discomfort with prolonged static.
- 2nd degree – due to the decrease in disc height, the distance between the vertebral bodies decreases.The spinal ligaments eventually relax. The vertebrae gain greater mobility, which is not typical for the chest as a whole. As a result, the risk of displacement increases. The pain occurs mainly during work. Directly at this stage, osteochondrosis of the thoracic region is detected, and the symptoms in women become obvious.
- Grade 3 – formation of intervertebral disc prolapse is observed.These phenomena are accompanied by subluxations and the development of arthrosis of the intervertebral joints. Mobility decreases, and numbness and tingling appear in the limbs. Painful sensations are recorded in the back, neck and thoracic region.
- 4th degree - the body tries to compensate for the hypermobility of the vertebrae and adapt to the dysfunction of the spine.Where the vertebral bodies come into contact with each other, osteophytes form, which can cause nerve entrapment and vertebral injury.
How to distinguish thoracic osteochondrosis from other diseases?
According to statistics, osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine, whose symptoms in women generally do not differ from those recorded in men, occurs less often than lesions of the cervical and lumbar spine. However, this does not make the process of diagnosing the disease any easier. Due to the peculiarities of localization, many doctors confuse pathology with diseases of the chest organs.
However, experienced experts who know how to recognize thoracic osteochondrosis already in the first stage try to rule out diseases of the breast, heart, stomach and lungs. Thus, in case of thoracic osteochondrosis, there is no cough, in contrast to the pathologies of the respiratory system, which is always accompanied by this symptom.
How to distinguish thoracic osteochondrosis from heart pain?
In practice, doctors often encounter a situation where the patient complains of regular pain in the heart, but the changes on the cardiogram and ultrasound are not recorded. In such cases, painful sensations in the chest on the left are associated with neurological disorders due to osteochondrosis. When the space between adjacent vertebrae decreases, the nerve roots are compressed, which causes painful sensations that mimic a heart attack.
Knowing how to distinguish angina from thoracic osteochondrosis, you can immediately identify myocardial disorders. Among the main differences:
- In osteochondrosis, the pain lasts for hours, weeks, has a wavy course, subsides and reappears. In angina pectoris, the pain attack lasts 10-15 minutes, it subsides after nitrates.
- The appearance of pain in osteochondrosis does not occur against the background of physical activity, unlike angina pectoris.
- Neurological pain due to spinal injury can be alleviated with analgesics, but for patients with cardiac pathology, these drugs are ineffective.
Thoracic osteochondrosis and VSD
Fixed signs of thoracic osteochondrosis in women must be distinguished from the manifestations of VSD. Unlike spinal injuries, diseases of the cardiovascular system are characterized by a number of symptoms that should be paid attention to.Among the characteristic signs of VSD:
- tachycardia, heart pain;
- occurrence of an asthma attack;
- unstable blood pressure due to circulatory disorders (pressure in thoracic osteochondrosis is always normal).
Thoracic osteochondrosis and abdominal pain
Abdominal pain with thoracic osteochondrosis is provoked by a violation of the innervation of the vertebrae located on the projection of the stomach. If the patient has stomach problems, agonizing pain occurs, accompanied by unpleasant feelings like heartburn. At the same time, painful sensations are in no way related to activity and physical activity.Pain in thoracic osteochondrosis in the abdominal area has the following characteristics:
- aggravated by movements involving the spine;
- discomfort does not subside after taking medicines that improve digestion;
- appear regardless of the fullness of the stomach: on an empty stomach, after eating.
Thoracic osteochondrosis and pain in the mammary gland
Mastalgia is a common symptom in women. Many girls experience painful sensations in their breasts due to cyclical hormonal changes. However, if there are no cyclical pains, doctors suspect possible changes in the spine. At the same time, women themselves begin to look for the cause on the Internet, trying to understand how to understand that you have osteochondrosis.
In cases where degenerative changes occur in the spine, the pain changes its location and occurs regardless of the phase of the menstrual cycle. In this case, there is no swelling or bloating of the breast. The gland itself completely retains its appearance, size and shape, unlike cases when breast pathologies develop. Similar signs of osteochondrosis in women help distinguish the disease.
What to do with thoracic osteochondrosis?
Suspecting thoracic osteochondrosis in women, doctors send patients for an appropriate examination. Such diagnosis of the disease and correct correction allow us to avoid the negative consequences that are inextricably linked to disorders of the spinal column. A detailed diagnosis based on hardware test data is important.
Diagnosis of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
The main and often the only diagnostic method is chest radiography. It allows you to diagnose osteochondrosis in women, regardless of the severity of the changes. It all depends on the quality of the photo.When osteochondrosis of the thoracic region is present, the symptoms in women in the picture are as follows:
- violation of the contours of the discs themselves, which are located between the vertebrae;
- modified disc shape;
- the presence of osteophytes (pathological growths);
- spiny appendages with sharp edges, irregularly shaped vertebrae;
- presence of intervertebral hernia.
Treatment of osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine
The therapy of this disease is complex. Treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis is carried out simultaneously in several directions:
- Pain relief- use NSAIDs.
- Strengthening the spine– moderate, balanced physical activity, physical therapy.
- Operation- when intervertebral hernias appear.