Cough with osteochondrosis

2023 Author: Alfred Shackley | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 13:14

Osteochondrosis is a degenerative-dystrophic process in which the intervertebral discs are destroyed.

There are many reasons for the onset of the disease:

• organic disorders - dysfunctions of the metabolic and endocrine systems;
• lack of enzymes that help to assimilate nutrients necessary to strengthen the skeletal system;
• hormonal changes;
• intoxication of the body;
• social conditions …

Pathological changes in the spine can develop against the background of chronic and infectious diseases and their treatment:

• a painful condition affects the function of assimilating nutrients,
• medicines that are used to eliminate the ailment.

Cough - a reflex reaction of the body when the respiratory system is irritated - is often a symptom of infectious diseases of a cold nature.

But with osteochondrosis, pathogenic microorganisms do not penetrate into the spine and the surrounding soft tissues. So why to the question: "Can there be a cough with osteochondrosis?" - are often answered in the affirmative?

Features of the course of osteochondrosis

Degenerative-dystrophic changes - whatever they are provoked - begin with a change in the vertebral disc, which, being deformed, changes the distance between the vertebrae. This creates an additional load on the ligaments, they sag, the vertebrae are displaced, an additional load falls on the joints, and microcracks appear in the cartilage.

The gelatinous contents are pushed out of the annulus fibrosus due to the increased load, the cartilage is destroyed even more. Protrusions appear.

Osteochondrosis rarely occurs without a symptom - salt deposition, osteophytes - bone spines appear between the vertebrae. They have a compensatory effect, the mobility of the vertebrae decreases and then disappears.

The spine is divided into several sections:

• cervical;
• chest;
• lumbar;
• sacral.

The disease itself is classified according to the same principle.

The main symptoms of osteochondrosis are pain and impairment of trophism. Signs of a degenerative process in different departments have some differences.

With pathology of the thoracic region, there are:

• back pain and shortness of breath;
• heart rhythm disturbance;
• back and shoulder pain.

One of the symptoms is a dry cough. To explain its occurrence, one should consider the causes of its occurrence. The discs become thinner, squeeze the nerve roots, pain radiates to the lungs, disrupting the secretory function. The evacuation of sputum becomes difficult, it begins to accumulate and a cough appears. If the spine of the upper thoracic region is affected, cardiac symptoms may appear.

Degeneration with changes in the vertebral discs in the cervical spine causes compression of the vertebral arteries, which provokes:

• headache;
• dizziness;
• nausea;
• lack of coordination.

Additional signs of the disease may be: swelling of the muscles of the larynx and the consequence of this: a feeling of "lump" in the throat and the accumulation of fluid at night near the pharyngeal tonsils. Numbness of the soft tissues of the larynx disrupts the swallowing reflex, during sleep, phlegm and saliva accumulate, and when the position changes, coughing begins.

With a disease localized in the cervical spine, the attacks are dry, sputum is separated with difficulty. Cough with pathology of the cervical spine often ends with vomiting - the accumulated sputum and saliva are intensely rejected.

Sore throat with pathology of the cervical spine has one-sided localization, since with degenerative changes in the intervertebral discs, the spine shifts to the side. From which side the nerve endings and blood vessels are squeezed, sputum accumulates on the other side.

If a symptom of osteochondrosis of the thoracic and cervical spine is a cough, then there is a high risk of secondary infection. The accumulating phlegm creates a favorable environment for increasing the activity of pathogenic microorganisms and they, entering the body from the outside or through the lymph flow or bloodstream, penetrating into the lymphoid tissue and lungs, are activated.

Cough in case of thoracic osteochondrosis and the spread of the disease to the cervical spine is not an obligatory symptom, but it significantly affects the immune status, lowering it.

Treatment of osteochondrosis, a symptom of which is cough

Regardless of the spine in which osteochondrosis develops, it is treated according to the standard scheme.

Analgesics, anesthetics, drugs from the NSAID group. It is most advisable to prescribe non-steroidal drugs for coughing - they simultaneously have an anti-inflammatory effect. Since the accumulation of sputum irritates the mucous membrane of the upper and lower respiratory tract, the likelihood of an inflammatory process increases. If at this stage the inflammatory process is stopped, in the future the possibility of introducing a secondary infection decreases

In diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, non-steroidal drugs are not used.

In this case, it is better to use an injectable form of drugs to relieve pain. NSAID injections cause the same side effects as tablets.

• Means that improve blood circulation in the soft tissues surrounding the spine: Euphyllin, Actovegin, Triental. Taking "Euphyllin", you should pay special attention to your own feelings - a side effect can be a sharp decrease in pressure.
• With osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, special attention is paid to muscle relaxants - these drugs relieve muscle spasms and improve blood circulation in the surrounding tissues. In chest osteochondrosis, they relieve symptoms that make breathing difficult.
• After eliminating the main symptom of the disease - pain - chondroprotectors are used - drugs that stimulate the regeneration of the cartilaginous tissue of the spine. You have to take them for a long time - up to six months.

Additional therapeutic measures:

• vitamin therapy - special attention is paid to B vitamins;
• immunocorrectors;
• physiotherapy;
• Spa treatment.

If there is a cough, it is imperative to take a course of massage of the collar zone. Reflex procedures have a beneficial effect on the state of the respiratory system - they accelerate blood supply, help restore transport function.

The therapeutic complex must be supplemented with physiotherapy exercises. Exercise strengthens the muscles that support the spine, which helps relieve pain, improve lung function, and eliminate coughs.

Exercises that strengthen the muscles of the thoracic and cervical spine: bending forward and backward - hands are on the back of the head; arm rotations, neck bends and turns.

When treating a cough that occurs due to osteochondrosis, you should not use "heavy artillery", drugs that thin phlegm and improve expectoration. With the elimination of the spasm of the muscles of the larynx and respiratory tract, the cough will disappear.

In order not to provoke a secondary infection, you should use means that eliminate respiratory tract irritation and prevent phlegm from accumulating in the lymphoid tissue or lungs.

Antitussive lozenges, traditional medicine recipes are used: rubbing with sea salt of the chest, compresses on the chest. The latter procedure also contributes to the treatment of osteochondrosis. Drugs with codeine are not used. They block the cough syndrome, and it is difficult to cough up the accumulated phlegm afterwards.

It is impossible to cure a cough that occurs with a disease of the spine without eliminating the underlying cause. To prevent its occurrence, you need to dress for the weather, exercise therapy and take medications to support immunity.