It happens that a person goes to the doctor with a complaint about the heart. The specialist sends him for an examination, but does not reveal pathologies. It's okay when a cardiologist recommends consulting a neurologist. In this case, he may report that the fault is not heart disease, but osteochondrosis.
It turns out that one of the symptoms of thoracic osteochondrosis is a painful sensation in the mammary gland or heart. It can be pulling, sore, and pressing. In some cases there is a sensation of heat in the thoracic region and rhythm disturbances. Over time, the pain can get worse and worse. In this case, heart medicines do not help.
Features of heart pain in osteochondrosis
Many people have a question: can the heart hurt with osteochondrosis? Yes. Patients often complain of the following:
- Prolonged persistence of heartbeat and chest pain.
- Gradually, there are pains in the heart with osteochondrosis.
- The pain sensations are dull and pressing.
- The intensity of pain in the sternum is low.
- Receiving nitrates does not remove chest pain.
- Patients try to make fewer movements with the upper limbs, as a result of which the pain sensations intensify.
Sometimes cervical and thoracic osteochondrosis appears at the same time, in this case additional pain in the neck occurs. The patient may complain of the following:
- Pain in the shoulder girdle, face and neck.
- The discomfort extends to almost the entire upper chest, affects the muscle tissue of the spine.
- An attack can last several hours or even days.
Sometimes the cause of the reflex pain lies in the squeezing of the vertebral artery. In this case, the following symptoms appear:
- dizziness;
- deterioration of hearing and vision;
- pressing pain in the back of the head;
- antihypertensive drugs do not give the desired effect;
- feeling of weakness;
- dyspnea;
- loss of consciousness;
- rush of blood to the face.
Symptoms of osteochondrosis of the spine and how the heart hurts in women and men do not differ.
What is the effect of osteochondrosis on the heart? The disease is accompanied by changes in the spine, especially in the area of the spinous processes of the lower cervical vertebrae. Weakness of the little finger and a decrease in the strength of the muscles of the left hand may be felt.
How to distinguish heart pain from osteochondrosis
How to recognize: is it pain due to heart disease or osteochondrosis? Solving the problem is not easy: in either case, the cells can emit aching and intense pain, and during physical exertion the discomfort intensifies.
Although it is quite difficult to distinguish angina pectoris from thoracic osteochondrosis, there are signs that will help determine the true cause of the pain.
Differences in heart pain in osteochondrosis:
- Long duration of pain: they last for weeks and months.
- Seizures occur with sudden raising of the arms and head, tilting and turning, as well as coughing.
- Pain can increase, decrease, and decrease when the body is in a comfortable position.
- With multiple ECG violations are not detected.
- When the chin is tilted towards the chest, the pain intensifies, this is a sign of an intervertebral hernia.
- With pain, there are no anxiety and fear attacks.
- Prolonged stay in one position (for example, while sleeping) can lead to a feeling of pain in the heart.
- Glycerol trinitrate does not help get rid of pain, for this it is necessary to use only analgesics.
- Heart pain in osteochondrosis with a sharp change in the position of the body instantly intensifies, they occur when sneezing, coughing, taking a deep breath and sudden movements of the head.
- When exposed to the spine, the intensity of the pain increases.
- Cardiac pain of the thoracic region with osteochondrosis is not life threatening.
Now let's see how to determine what is bad for the heart with angina. In this case, there will be such pains:
- short term;
- not related to physical activity;
- heart medications help stop or reduce pain;
- pain sensations do not change if the load on the spine is constant;
- the pains have the same intensity;
- pain sensations spread to the arm, jaw and under the shoulder blade on the left side;
- pain can be caused by neuropsychic overload;
- the cardiogram reflects the presence of pathologies;
- the patient is afraid of death;
- can cause death of the patient.
The nature of pain in osteochondrosis
Many are interested in how the heart hurts with osteochondrosis. Discomfort is felt not only in the chest, but also in the upper abdomen, ribs and near the spine. The movements are constrained with a long stay in the same position, while the pain intensifies. A short walk helps get rid of the discomfort.
Also, there may be pain in the back and in the shoulder blade area. It can get worse when you take a deep breath. The degree of discomfort is influenced by temperature (decrease) and by changes in atmospheric pressure.
Osteochondrosis and heart pain are aggravated by twisting the torso. This is due to the increased load on the anterior vertebral disc. Often there is a syndrome in this area. During inhalation, pain in the intercostal space may occur. Tension of the back muscles is possible, accompanied by one-sided spasms.
Sometimes the heart hurts with osteochondrosis so that it may seem that there are problems in the organs of the chest cavity. The disease can masquerade as intestinal and stomach pain, and in some cases it can even resemble appendicitis. If no action is taken, osteochondrosis will not only radiate to the heart, but also a pathology of the respiratory, cardiovascular and digestive systems will occur.
The nature of the pain can change. Exacerbations can be replaced by remission, it happens in waves.
Causes of pain in the heart with osteochondrosis
Distinguishing a heart attack from osteochondrosis is not always easy. In the human body there is a complex complex of transmission of impulses from various systems and organs to the brain and vice versa. This allows it to collect information on all systems and manage their work. As a result, a connection is formed between the nerve endings and the spinal cord, which are located in the spine. When they are violated, the transmission of impulses occurs with a violation, the brain reacts incorrectly, pain appears radiating to the chest region and the heart.
Pain in the heart with osteochondrosis appears in the following sequence:
- Changes occur in the spine due to injury.
- The intervertebral disc protrudes, this does not affect the fibrous ring, which is prone to protrusion.
- In the event of a rupture of the fibrous ring, the center of the cartilaginous disc enters the cerebral canal, causing a hernia.
- osteophytes are formed.
- The vessels and nerves surrounding the disc begin to flatten.
- The appearance of pain syndrome.
With osteochondrosis, the heartbeat may become more frequent and tachycardia may appear. Spinal injuries in different areas can give different pain symptoms. Neuralgia is affected by the degree of damage:
- only the body of the vertebra;
- intervertebral discs;
- ligament apparatus;
- paravertebral muscles.
How does osteochondrosis affect the functioning of the heart? After deformation, the discs compress the nerves in the spine. This leads to pain. Osteochondrosis can give not only to the heart, but also cause pathologies of the entire spine. The disease can spread to adjacent departments, which leads to the appearance of new symptoms.
Symptoms of pain in the heart with osteochondrosis
Signs and symptoms of osteochondrosis with pain in the heart often occur against the background of a completely healthy heart system. They are often stable but can appear and increase paroxysm. In case of spinal problems, the pains are dull, deep and pressing, their characteristic is a non-acute severity. With pain in the chest region with osteochondrosis, glycerol trinitrate does not help, since the cause is not in the heart.
To distinguish pain in the heart with thoracic osteochondrosis, it is important to know that sensations of a different nature can occur. For example, they can spread from the affected area to the muscles of the front of the chest, to which the fifth to seventh cervical roots are connected. In this case, the pain may be felt in the upper left area of the body, sometimes also affecting part of the face. At the same time, vascular disorders are not diagnosed, the ECG does not detect abnormalities. This also happens at the height of the pain.
How does thoracic osteochondrosis affect the heart and the human body?
One of the manifestations of osteochondrosis is squeezing or pinching of blood vessels. This leads to a narrowing of the "channels" through which blood passes. In order for the organs to continue to receive it in the right amount, the heart must work more actively. This means that the number of contractions increases per minute. As a result, blood pressure rises. This is the effect of osteochondrosis on the heart.
Violations in the work of the circulatory system lead to the appearance of pain in the heart with thoracic osteochondrosis and oxygen starvation in the brain. As a result, the above symptoms occur. Reaction, speed of thought, emotional state, orientation in space and memory depend on the work of the heart, as well as on sight or hearing problems.
Due to all these consequences, it becomes difficult to determine whether the heart hurts or whether it is thoracic osteochondrosis.
Diagnostics
How to determine that the heart hurts due to osteochondrosis? There are special procedures that will help determine the form and extent of the disease. When the disease gets worse, it is best to see a doctor. Doctors may advise you to undergo a differential diagnosis, which allows you to determine what is causing the disease - the heart or the spine. It can include the following procedures:
- Electrocardiogram. When recording an ECG, it will be possible to identify heart disease immediately. If the results are normal, it will become obvious that the cause of the pain is neuralgia or osteochondrosis.
An ECG is a mandatory diagnostic procedure for the formation of chest pain.
- ultrasound. It is performed for patients with suspected infectious lesions of the heart. It is used as an additional method.
- X-ray. X-ray is prescribed for patients with suspected osteochondrosis. The images will allow to determine the destructive destruction of the joints. With heart problems, they will not suffer.
- CT and MRI. They can help if the x-rays aren't conclusive. These methods will more accurately determine the injury. MRI will help diagnose osteochondrosis and heart disease.
Treatment
Rest and bed rest will help relieve pain in osteochondrosis. The surface does not have to be very soft or hard. The pillow is selected in such a way that the neck does not bend. You can relieve the pain if you put a non-hot heating pad under it.
Treatment of thoracic osteochondrosis is carried out by such means:
- Medicines:
- vasodilators;
- neurotropic drugs;
- diuretic drugs;
- analgesics;
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatories;
- chondroprotectors;
- sedatives.
- Physiotherapy. The patient undergoes procedures in which the affected area is affected by an electric field and currents of varying frequency. This will help start the natural tissue regeneration mechanism.
- The use of turpentine, ointments containing snake or bee venom, as well as pain relievers. They activate the release of heat in the muscles, improve the condition of the nerve roots, dilate blood vessels.
- Acupuncture. With the help of needles, the energy meridians and active points are influenced.
- Manual therapy. Thanks to them, the degenerative processes of the spinal column are corrected and effects on the intervertebral joints are produced.
- Back massage will not allow you to achieve the desired effect. The muscles are located around the vertebral discs, it is almost impossible to reach them. The effect gives an exceptionally deep massage and acupressure. Before this procedure, it is recommended to take pain relievers.
- At home, you can use heating pads and hot packs to reduce muscle tone.
Manual therapy and acupressure should only be performed by a qualified orthopedist, neuropathologist or traumatologist who has undergone special training and received the appropriate certificate.
Taking heart medications is usually the first and most powerful treatment for a disease. When used with other methods, the results can be greatly improved. Arm yourself with knowledge, it's time to start the treatment!
self-treatment errors
Often, patients with complaints of a disease of the thoracic spine make a serious mistake during self-treatment: they take medications if there are contraindications for them. For example, the older generation likes to use NSAIDs from the group of phenylacetic acid derivatives. However, it cannot be used for gastric mucosal problems. They are typical for people over 50.
So, we looked at the difference and what are the differences between the symptoms of angina pectoris and osteochondrosis and also got to know the methods of diagnosis and treatment. Collaborate with qualified doctors and follow their guidance. Be persistent and consistent and you will be able to overcome this painful and dangerous disease! Remember, it can be very dangerous. So much so that the patient can be discharged from military service.