What is cervical radiculopathy? Cervical radiculopathy is often known as pinched nerve. This condition is one of the most common neck problems. Cervical radiculopathy is an injury or change in the way a cervical nerve functions due to the compression of one of the nerve roots near the vertebrae of the cervical spine. It is compression and inflammation of the nerve roots in the cervical spine. Symptoms of this nerve dysfunction include severe pain in the arm, muscle weakness, changes in reflexes and/or numbness. Cervical radiculopathy includes causes such as injuries caused by compression, irritation, stretching, and damage to the nerve root. It often causes symptoms in the nerve root. Cervical radiculopathy is on one side of the neck, but if there are large bony spines on both sides, there is a possibility of compression and irritation of the nerve roots and the occurrence of symptoms on both sides of the neck. Cervical radiculopathy varies depending on the nerve affected. For example, if the nerve root above the C6 vertebra is affected, it is called C6 radiculopathy. Although the specific symptoms of each patient can be very different, the common types and symptoms of cervical radiculopathy are as follows: ### C5 radiculopathy symptoms This type of radiculopathy causes weakness and/or pain in the arms and shoulders, especially discomfort around the scapula bones, which in some rare cases has tingling or numbness. ### Symptoms of C6 radiculopathy This type causes weakness and/or pain along the length of the arm, including the muscles of the biceps, ie... the muscles of the forearm, index finger, wrist and thumb... This is more common... ### Symptoms of C7 radiculopathy This type of radiculopathy causes weakness and/or pain from the neck to the hand and can involve the muscles of the triceps, i.e. the muscles of the back of the arms and the middle finger. This type is also common... ### Radiculopathy Symptoms C8 This type of radiculopathy causes pain from the neck to the hand, weakness of the hand when grasping objects, and numbness and pain. There is a possibility of spreading these symptoms along the inner part of the arm, ring finger and little fingers.. Causes of cervical radiculopathy Cervical radiculopathy is defined as a disorder in the function of the nerve root in the cervical spine. This disorder includes a wide range of complications and has several causes. It is possible that all people at any age, from childhood to old age, will suffer from this type of disorder, and its peak is at the age of 40 to 50 years, or at the age of 40 to 50 years, a problem occurs in it. The nerve root causes the possibility of radiculopathy symptoms. At the age of 30 to 40 Age, trauma and disc herniation are the most common causes of nerve entrapment.. As we age, the cause is mainly wear and tear.. At the age of 50 to 60, disc degeneration is the most common cause, and at the age of 70 it is usually due to a change in stenosis.. Arthritis... vertebrae, arthritis or other injuries that put pressure on the nerve roots.. The most common causes of cervical radiculopathy are: - Degenerative changes - Disc herniation - Injury - Cervical spondylosis ### Degenerative changes With age, the height of the spinal discs decreases and its contents begin to protrude....the amount of water in the disc decreases and the discs become dry and hard....this problem causes the disc spaces to shrink and the height of the disc space to decrease....as the height of the discs decreases, the space between the vertebrae also decreases and the vertebrae become closer to each other....the body reacts to this destruction of the disc by creating additional bones called bone spurs around the disc in order to strengthen it....the spinal canal is narrow The passage on each side of the spine where the nerve roots coming out of it are compressed if there is an obstruction... Degenerative changes of the discs are usually called arthritis or spondylosis. Exceed it.. Affected people do not feel any pain in their neck.... Since the damage caused by a herniated disc is much less and smaller than spondylosis, it is likely to get smaller over time or not damage other parts.... On the other hand, spondylosis usually causes stiffening and contraction of the tissues. Sometimes bone spurs occur with age and wear and tear of the spine.. Movements such as bending or turning the body.... The following factors are effective in creating cervical disc: - Increasing age - Repetitive movements in the neck - Not exercising regularly or daily - Improper posture - Using incorrect methods to lift the load or turn the body, which causes additional pressure on the neck - Injury to the neck In less common cases, the cause of cervical radiculopathy is the following: - Spinal infections - The presence of cancerous tumors in the spine - Benign or non-cancerous masses in the spine - Sarcinosis, growth of inflammatory cells ### Injury Cervical radiculopathy occurs in young people due to a ruptured disc, which may have been caused by trauma. The discs often bulge or protrude when performing activities such as bending, lifting, twisting, or pulling. As a result of the disc herniation, its contents are compressed and cause inflammation of the nerve roots. Cervical spondylosis is caused by gradual wear and tear or age-related changes. These changes in the cervical spine are as described Below is: - Narrowing of disk space - Extrusion of disk contents - Disc calcification - Stiffness around the vertebrae, which leads to the creation of bone spurs.... These types of changes in the discs can be detected using X-rays and other radiographic imaging tests, including MRI or CT scans.... Read more: Physiotherapy and neck stiffness treatment in Shiraz Treatment of cervical radiculopathy Fortunately, more than 85% of cases of cervical radiculopathy resolve without specific treatment within 8 to 12 weeks... If the symptoms persist, several other treatment options can be used... Since this condition is different for each person, the treatment plan must be unique and designed according to the conditions of each patient... Cervical radiculopathy treatment options include: - Preventing the movement of the neck and keeping it stable - medicine - Steroid injection in the epidural space of the neck - Physiotherapy - Surgery Doctors almost always start treating cervical radiculopathy with non-surgical treatments.... More than half of the patients with this condition get good results from non-surgical treatments. If non-surgical treatments are not effective, the doctor recommends surgery. Non-surgical treatments of cervical radiculopathy ### Keeping the neck still For temporary management of the neck problem and relief of symptoms, the doctor may recommend the use of a neck collar to reduce neck movement and stimulate the nerve roots. Medical treatment of cervical radiculopathy In some cases, certain medications can help reduce the symptoms of cervical radiculopathy, including: Corticosteroids (anti-inflammatory drugs) or non-steroidal pain relievers such as ibuprofen or naproxen... Steroids may be given orally or by epidural injection in the space around the hardware, the membrane covering the spinal cord... ### Steroid injection in the epidural space of the neck Cervical epidural steroid injection (Cervical ESI) is an injection of anti-inflammatory drugs. A steroid or corticosteroid is injected into the epidural space around the nerves of the cervical spine. The main purpose of this injection is to control pain caused by irritation and inflammation of the nerve roots of the cervical spine. By reducing inflammation and relieving pain, some patients speed up the healing process and others experience a complete recovery. NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen reduce pain and inflammation caused by cervical radiculopathy. The effects of these drugs are due to the reduction of inflammation in the damaged nerve roots. Cervical radiculopathy. If the pain is severe and persistent and non-surgical treatments are not effective for at least 6 to 12 weeks, or if there is severe neurological impairment from cervical radiculopathy, the doctor will suggest surgery. Several different surgical methods are used to treat cervical radiculopathy.. - Artificial disc replacement (ADR) - Posterior neck laminofuraminotomy The method your doctor recommends depends on several factors - most importantly, the type and location of the problem. Other factors include: - Patient preference for a surgical procedure - Doctor's preference and experience - The history of previous diseases and the person's general health in the past (including whether the person has previously had neck surgery or not) Cervical radiculopathy physiotherapy Physiotherapy and special exercises that focus on strengthening and stretching the neck muscles can help in the treatment of cervical radiculopathy... The program of neck physiotherapy treatments is prepared for each person specifically and according to several factors such as the location of the injury in the neck area and the general physical health of the person. It adds to pain reduction and physical fitness exercises to reduce acute symptoms.... Teaching how to put the body in the right position and safe and comfortable ways to do things is also one of the options of the physiotherapy treatment program.... After reducing the pain, strengthening exercises and range of motion help in the slow recovery of the affected area of the neck and shoulder due to the pain and weakening of the treatment options... - Training and providing the necessary recommendations - Manual therapy - AROM therapeutic exercise, stretching and strengthening exercises - Correct body posture retraining - Training and providing the necessary recommendations Education is the key to the patient's cooperation in physiotherapy treatments... If the patient is familiar with this condition and the cause of neck and shoulder pain, he is likely to participate better in any rehabilitation program. The spinal cord is involved... so this therapeutic intervention should be avoided in the treatment of cervical radiculopathy, especially if imaging of the spine has not been done yet.... It is also necessary to be aware of possible risk factors such as arterial insufficiency, high blood pressure, problems with ligaments connected to the skull, and upper motor neuron disorders....