Intercostal neuralgia is a common cause of chest pain.
The disease is mainly observed in people of advanced age.
In children, the disease is rare.
Specialists are often visited by clients complaining of severe pain in the chest area, and many of them attribute it to heart disease.
But an experienced specialist, before prescribing treatment, will conduct a full examination and find out the cause of this condition.
Intercostal neuralgia: symptoms
The word neuralgia, translated means nerve pain. If the patient has neuralgia, then inhaling and exhaling air will hurt him. Intercostal neuralgia is a symptom that has understandable causes. Despite the fact that they are pronounced, specialists often confuse neuralgia with other serious diseases.
Main symptoms
The patient who has been diagnosed with intercostal neuralgia, the symptoms of the disease literally poison his life, since they are painful from the first day of their appearance. The pain syndrome occurs intensively, gradually spreads along the intercostal spaces, in other words, passes along the path of the nerve. When you inhale, the pain becomes stronger, as well as with movements, coughing, turning the body. Piercing pain does not stop for a long time, and is constantly intensifying for no apparent reason. The duration of such sensations can vary from several hours, up to 2-3 days.
Features of neuralgia, for the classic picture of the disease:
1. The pain syndrome is quite intense, burning pain, somewhat reminiscent of renal colic.
2. If you make a palpation of the intercostal space, then there will be an increase in pain.
3. The patient feels the movement of the pain syndrome.
4. The skin above the site of the lesion may partially or even completely lose sensitivity.
Secondary symptoms:
1. The patient suffers from excessive sweating.
2. The skin becomes pale.
3. There is a contraction of some muscle segments.
For all the symptoms described above, it is not difficult to diagnose the disease, but, unfortunately, neuralgia is often hidden under other diseases. The pain can be aching or dull, its intensification periodically occurs.
In addition to localization in the intercostal spaces, there may be a sensation of pain in the stomach, heart, and back. But to explain this is quite simple - the intercostal nerves have branches, they depart to all of the above.
But even despite this disguise, pain from neuralgia can still be distinguished from pain associated with diseases. So, for example, with localization in the region of the heart, it will not pass even after taking nitroglycerin. But under the influence of drugs such as validol or corvalol, it begins to decrease.
Intercostal neuralgia home treatment: medications
Finding out the cause of pain in the chest and ribs on your own is impossible. It is not recommended to make a diagnosis on your own and begin to be treated with medications, it is not clear why. Be sure to visit a neurologist for a complete examination and clarification of the diagnosis.
Treatment will directly depend on the cause of this condition. The doctor should consider whether the patient has problems with the stomach or intestines. Since with their presence, drug therapy can not be prescribed.
Modern treatment for back pain has long gone from the simple elimination of discomfort. It is important to treat not the manifestations, but their cause. An example of such an integrated approach is the addition of NSAIDs with neurotropic vitamins (B1, B6, B12). B vitamins not only help to eliminate pain faster than when taking only NSAIDs (for example, diclofenac sodium), but also have a beneficial effect on physiological processes in the nerve fiber stimulate nutrition and restoration of the structure of nerve tissue.
So, the optimal complement to NSAIDs is Neuromultivit in injections, which includes three vitamins B1, B6, B12 in therapeutic dosages. The use of neurotropic vitamins in high therapeutic doses allows you to consolidate the analgesic effect, helps to restore nerve fiber, which helps to achieve long-term remission of the pain syndrome. They begin treatment with daily injections for 5-10 days, then switch to maintenance administration, 2-3 injections per week for two to three weeks.
In the acute period of the development of the disease, experts recommend adhering to bed rest, and you need to lie on a hard mattress.
A good effect is given by ointments made on the basis of bee or snake venom. After applying them, the muscles relax, muscle elasticity becomes better. The area that you treat with ointment must be bandaged with something.
Capsicum plaster used to treat intercostal neuralgia. But before applying it, you need to degrease the skin with alcohol, and then wipe it dry. After you feel pleasant warmth, immediately remove the patch. After its use, the muscles relax, and the inflammation and pain are relieved.
External drugs include diclofenac, ketanol, finalgon. They allow you to relieve muscle spasm, eliminate pain, stop the inflammatory process.
Doctors use NSAIDs as medicines for the disease, these include Coteprofen, Indomethacin.
If the pain sensation lasts for a long time, and the usual drugs do not help, blockages are prescribed, namely the introduction of painkillers and anesthetics under the skin. In order to enhance tissue oxygen saturation, Pentoxifelin and Trental are used.
For internal use, experts advise using Pentalgin, Sedalgin. Thanks to them, the body temperature decreases, the pain stops.
Medication is not only to relieve symptoms, but also to relieve pressure on pinched nerves.
In the future, it is recommended to restore the mobility of the spine, for this they use a chondroprotector.
However, the treatment consists not only in taking medications, you need to do complex therapy. Medications are taken in conjunction with a course of physiotherapy. First of all, heating with ultraviolet occurs, gymnastics is performed, massage is done.
Only all measures taken together will ultimately give a positive result, and the patient will be able to live without a constant sensation of pain.
Intercostal neuralgia treatment at home: folk remedies
Alternative medicine has accumulated many prescriptions for the treatment of intercostal neuralgia. All of them can have an irritating and analgesic effect, and inflammatory processes are eliminated.
However, it is better to use the drugs only for a day to relieve pain symptoms, but in order to completely eliminate the symptoms of the disease and cure it, you need to contact specialists.
Effective folk recipes for the treatment of intercostal neuralgia:
• medical grindings. To carry them out, take a little Vaseline and turpentine, combine, mix well and rub into a sore spot;
• mixture for compresses. In order to alleviate pain and get rid of symptoms, it is necessary to apply a compress, which is a cotton cloth pre-soaked in a special mixture. You can prepare it as follows: take one teaspoon of turmeric, two tablespoons of ginger, half a spoon of Chilean pepper. Mix everything and add water, as a result, gruel should turn out. Preheat it a little, put on a cloth and attach to the body;
• glycerin and iodine. You can cure neuralgia with a 15-day course of treatment, during which a special mixture is applied to the sore spot. Add glycerin and iodine, in equal amounts, to a dark glass bottle. Shake and apply to the body. This procedure is performed once every two days;
• burdock. Often people at home use burdock to treat intercostal neuralgia. Just pick a leaf of a plant and attach it to a sore spot. Then, with a woolen scarf or scarf, tie it, leave it in this position until the morning;
• ointment based on lilacs. An ointment is also useful, everyone can cook it at home. Take porcelain dishes, put in a water bath, and melt the lard in it. As soon as it melts, put pre-dried buds or lilac leaves on it. Moreover, the ratio of leaves and lard should be 1: 4. After cooking, cool well and strain. In order to relieve pain and relieve inflammation, rub into sore spots.
Water treatments
In addition to the use of ointments, decoctions and rubbing, you can use therapeutic baths. Here are some recipes:
1. Before going to bed, take the following bath: add a decoction of aspen bark and poplar branches to the water. Boil the ingredients for 30 minutes. The temperature of the water in which you will lie should not exceed 38C. The course of treatment is 10 days. In order to enhance the effect of the bath, after taking it you can rub fir tree oil into the skin.
2. The next bath also refers to folk remedies: for 10 days, add to the water in which you take a bath, a tincture of 4 tablespoons of sage, pre-filled with water. Insist the remedy for an hour, strain.
3. Pour water into the bathtub, the temperature of which should be 38 C. After that, add four drops of eucalyptus and lavender oil to it. But before that, mix the butter with milk and alcohol, take 100 ml of each product.
All baths are taken for 10-15 minutes. In order for the effect of the treatment to be more, do not dry yourself, let the skin dry itself.
Intercostal neuralgia: symptoms treatment at home - doctor's recommendations
If you have symptoms of the disease, you should consult a doctor. This must be done not only in order to determine the causes of the condition, but also for their correct elimination. Before prescribing treatment, you need to find out the severity of the pathology.
It is really possible to treat intercostal neuralgia at home, but only if the disease is mild. In cases where the pain is accompanied by fever, or other symptoms, it is necessary to undergo treatment in a hospital. In the presence of concomitant diseases, not all treatment methods are suitable. Many drugs may be contraindicated. Traditional medicine does not always have a positive effect on health.
Not everyone understands how intercostal neuralgia can be dangerous, which is why neglected visiting hospitals. But this is really dangerous, since the pain can be so strong that no pain medication will help.
During treatment, the patient should be constantly under the supervision of a doctor. Watch your health and take care of it!
