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Contrary to appearances, the spine of a healthy person is not straight. It has physiological s-shaped curves. Forward curve of the spine is lordosis, and backward curve is kyphosis. Unfortunately, pathological changes often appear within the curvatures, manifested by nagging pain.
What is cervical lordosis?
The physiological forward curvature of the spine, or lordosis, occurs in the cervical and sacral regions. The arched bends act as a shock absorber, protecting the skeleton from shocks caused by, among others, by such mundane activities as walking or jumping. Cervical spine lordosis is needed to properly support the head without damaging the muscles and ligaments.
Abolition of cervical lordosis – causes of pathological changes
It happens that as a result of various factors, lordosis deepens or flattens or even completely straightens. Deep spinal lordosis is a lesion that can be observed in the sacral region. A common problem in the case of the cervical segment is the total or partial removal of the physiological curvature. Pathological changes within the spine curvatures give severe pain symptoms and require treatment.
The main cause of abolished lordosis in the cervical region is degenerative changes in bones and joints resulting from aging processes. In the posterior vertebral processes, osteophytes are formed – bone growths that cause an overgrowth of the cervical spine as they tighten the spinal canal and the gaps between the discs. As a result of the changes, there is pain in the neck, during which we involuntarily tighten the muscles of the spine. In turn, muscle tension causes their shortening, which promotes straightening of the natural curvature of the skeleton’s axis. Another cause of the abolition of cervical lordosis may be an injury caused by an accident, e.g. a car accident, during which the head shifts rapidly forward and backward, which results in the relaxation of muscles and ligaments while changing the position of the cervical spine.
There is a group of factors that increase the risk of the discussed posture defect. We include:
- office work and other jobs that require frequent and long-term bowing of the head,
- vitamin D and calcium deficiencies,
- obesity leading to excessive neck fatness,
- osteoporosis.
Symptoms of the abolition of cervical lordosis
The abolition of the cervical lordosis causes the head to move excessively in relation to the spine. The lesion is manifested primarily by severe pain in the nape of a paroxysmal character. Other symptoms of the abolition of cervical lordosis appear when there is pressure on the peripheral nerves. We can then deal with numbness, tingling and paresis of the hands, other symptoms are also common: dizziness, fainting, tinnitus and nystagmus.
Cervical lordosis – treatment of shallow and lifted cervical lordosis
Treatment of lesions within the curvature of the cervical spine is based primarily on the implementation of intensive, regular rehabilitation, which should last at least 3 months. It is very important to correctly perform the corrective exercises ordered by the patient, adjusted to the patient individually. The set of exercises is composed in cooperation with the orthopedist and physiotherapist. An important criterion for the selection of exercises is the elimination of severe pain while performing them. If the patient complains of pain, stop exercising immediately. In addition to exercises aimed at correcting the posture, there are also exercises to relax the muscles, additionally supported by therapeutic massages. Other elements of rehabilitation, complementing the therapy in the case of abolished or shallow cervical lordosis, include laser or lamp irradiation and the use of interference currents or ultrasound.
In case of problems with the cervical spine, we recommend compresses using Visiomed KINECARE VM-GB6 compresses for the neck, neck and shoulder.
People suffering from degeneration of the cervical spine should obtain a specialized orthopedic pillow, thanks to which the correct body posture will be maintained during sleep. Avoid sleeping in the prone position. In some situations, e.g. when spinal degeneration concerns both lordosis and kyphosis lesions, surgery is necessary.
The Vitolog posture corrector, available at a promotional price on Medonet Market, will help you maintain a proper body posture. In turn, for rehabilitation exercises, we recommend the Dynapad sensorimotor pillow, which strengthens the muscles of the spine.