Contents
Most people today lead a predominantly sedentary lifestyle, have hypodynamic work. The state of stiffness in the neck is well known for them, since the spine does not receive the proper level of stress, being in the wrong position. As a result, the vertebrae are displaced, the muscles are clamped, and the nerves become inflamed. However, the feeling when movements in the neck are limited may also appear for other reasons, be a sign of certain diseases. In any case, such a state gives a person obvious discomfort, pain, he cannot fully live and work.
Neck stiffness: why it manifests itself
Stiffness and limited movements of the neck may be due to damage or pathological processes of various structures of this part of the body – vertebrae, intervertebral discs, nerves, muscles, blood vessels, and circulatory disorders. In some cases, if a person has intense lymphadenopathy of the cervical lymph nodes, it may also be painful for him to turn his head and make other neck movements.
The pain can cover not only the neck, but also give to the adjacent parts of the body – the head, shoulders, back, jaws, arms. In fact, pain is the main reason for the restriction of mobility – a person could move his neck if he had not been stopped by an intense pain syndrome.
Neck muscle problems
One of the reasons for the limitation of motor ability is the rigidity of the neck muscles. Rigidity is a condition in which the muscle tissue has an increased tone and resists any movement. The patient feels pain when trying to move and cannot relax the muscles. Rigidity is a characteristic symptom of damage to the nervous system, and in itself is not a disease – it only accompanies other diseases, sometimes very dangerous.
Rigidity can develop against the background of a sedentary lifestyle, with monotonous loads, when a person sits a lot, rarely changes his position, is constantly at a computer or driving. As a result, spasms and aching pains appear. In this case, the problem is solved by restoring blood circulation through exercise. If the rigidity is caused by an illness, such measures will not help.
Reasons for the development of muscle rigidity:
- cervical osteochondrosis: occurs as a degenerative process in the vertebrae and intervertebral discs, due to which the patient develops innervation disorders, rigidity, pain in the hands, dizziness, decreased hearing and visual acuity;
- torticollis: congenital or acquired pathology of the structure of the neck, provoking stiffness and muscle spasms;
- meningitis, encephalitis, cerebral hemorrhages: are considered the main causes of the development of neck stiffness, characterized by inflammation and circulatory disorders. Symptoms are manifested by headache, lethargy, nausea, high fever, rash, dizziness. Reliable diagnosis occurs by checking the Brudzinsky symptom, when the patient cannot freely pull his chin to the sternum in the supine position;
- parkinsonism: associated with the resulting tension of various muscle groups, including the neck, as well as trembling in the body;
- muscle strain and injury;
- intracranial hematoma;
- stroke.
Neck muscle problems are not limited to stiffness. There is also a connection between the psychological state of a person and his neck. It is known that in stressful situations, a person tends to intensely strain the muscles of the neck and shoulders, as if pressing his head. The more often stress occurs, the more often the muscles are in a tense state and cannot immediately relax after the stress is left behind.
Depression, fatigue, overwork are the reasons why the head can more and more tend to go down, and the muscles stretch behind it, being in a state of spasm. The tension covers the entire upper half of the body. The weight of the head is from 4 to 8 kilograms, and only 7 vertebrae hold it on the shoulders from the bone skeleton, the rest of the load falls on the muscular corset, consisting of 32 muscles. Their excessive tension negatively affects the work of nerve endings and blood vessels. A person has wrinkles on the forehead, puffiness and rashes on the face, salt deposits.
Diseases of the cervical spine: how stiffness appears
Neck movements are often limited due to diseases of the spine:
- hernia and osteochondrosis of the cervical region;
- spondylosis;
- arthrosis;
- cervicalgii;
- asymmetry of the cervical artery.
The spine in the cervical region consists of vertebrae and cartilaginous joints (discs) between them. As a result of exposure to adverse factors, they can be destroyed, for example, due to a deterioration in the blood circulation of the cartilage tissue, heavy physical exertion, and muscle spasms.
Hernias are a pathology more common in older people. Symptoms are infrequently bright and characteristic, in most cases the pain occurs due to the muscles, but also many undergo an MRI of the cervical spine and find a hernia.
They are formed against the background of degenerative dystrophic processes in the neck, due to which the intervertebral discs do not receive normal nutrition, dry out, and lose elasticity. Gradually, their tissues protrude from the structure of the spinal column, over time, the fibrous membrane breaks, and the core of the cartilage comes out, squeezing the blood vessels and nerve endings. The condition is usually formed with osteochondrosis, with chronic muscle tension accompanying it. Symptoms are characterized by severe pain that extends to the shoulder girdle and upper limbs. The patient feels numbness and tingling of the palms, severe limitation of movements. In the morning, after sleep, the sensations are especially pronounced.
Spondylosis is a pathological process in which the edges of the vertebrae acquire growths from bone tissue and salt deposits. The growths contribute to the deformation of the cartilage of the discs. They are formed due to degenerative dystrophic processes in the intervertebral cartilage. There is a decrease in the height of the cervical disc, due to which the edges of the vertebrae are gradually erased from each other. Instead of the erased tissue, the body builds up a new one in excess, deforming the cartilage tissue. The patient has muscle spasms, stiffness of movements, severe pain, and sometimes asymmetry of the cervical artery.
Cervical arthrosis is a pathological process of deformation of the facet joints of the cervical region, without inflammatory etiology. It is characterized by severe pain, which is localized not only in the neck, but also in the shoulder region. The pain is especially strong in the morning and before going to bed in the evening.
Cervicalgia is the Latin name for a pain syndrome localized in the neck. A person suddenly develops very severe pain, accompanied by spasm, due to which the patient practically cannot move the entire upper body and upper limbs. Thus, the body protects the nerves from possible clamping. Muscle spasm is necessary to prevent further exposure to it. This is not an independent disease, but a symptom of pathologies such as hernia, spondylosis, osteochondrosis.
The asymmetry of the cervical artery means that of the two arteries through which the brain receives oxygen and nutrition, one is smaller in diameter. This may be a congenital feature or occur due to compression of the cervical vertebrae. As a result, the brain experiences oxygen starvation. The condition is accompanied by an increase in blood pressure, tinnitus, darkening of the eyes, pain in the neck and head, neck stiffness.
In addition to the above diseases, the cause of neck stiffness can be such an acute condition as a displacement of a vertebra or its injury. Usually occurs due to a sharp or intense physical impact, as a result of a weakening of the muscular corset, when the muscles cannot hold the vertebrae in place.
Nerve tissues and cells in the cervical region are part of the nervous system of all organisms. Any changes in the neck (hernia, displacement, arthrosis) can lead to damage to the nerve roots – they are pinched, inflamed, squeezed, causing a person very strong pain. This reduces neck mobility.
What to do if you feel limited movement in the cervical region
Neck stiffness can have a different character – sometimes it is an independent symptom, which manifests itself as a result of a sedentary lifestyle and lack of physical activity. In other cases, it is a sign of diseases and degenerative processes that may be irreversible.
If the sensation bothers you more and more often, and pains, spasms, muscle hypertonicity are added to it, you should definitely see a doctor. In such cases, a rheumatologist, neurologist, orthopedist, physiotherapist can help. These narrow specialists prescribe the necessary diagnostic measures, determine the cause of the problem, prescribe treatment, and can refer the patient to a masseur or chiropractor.
To determine the cause of stiffness of movements, the doctor may refer the patient to an ultrasound Doppler of the vessels of the neck, MRI and radiography of the cervical spine.
Limited movement in the cervical region is mainly a symptom of the development of pathological destructive processes in the neck. First of all, the problem signals that a person does not pay due attention to the health of the neck, and physical activity is either not present in sufficient quantity, or their quality harms the state of the body. You should not endure the stiffness of the neck – at the first manifestations, you should consult a doctor.