Be careful when working at a desk, or you may get this disease

Author: Hou Jiayi, Deputy Chief Technician, Shanxi Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Reviewer: Li Ning, deputy chief physician, Shanxi Provincial People's Hospital

In the Internet age, people are increasingly dependent on computers and mobile phones. Working at a desk for a long time on a computer and playing with mobile phones during breaks seem to be the norm for professionals. Many people experience neck pain and heaviness, or even arm pain and numbness. What causes these symptoms? Take a look at the following symptoms. If you have 1-2 of them, you may have cervical spondylosis.

1. Self-diagnosis of cervical spondylosis

1. Neck discomfort, pain or stiffness, and an uncomfortable feeling when the neck is placed in any position may be cervical spondylosis.

2. The body feels as if it is being tied up with cloth; the lower limbs suddenly become weak and you kneel down while walking, or there is a feeling of "stepping on cotton" when walking; or the objects held in the hands are unstable and fall suddenly, which may be cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

3. Unexplained tingling in the fingers and unexplained numbness in the upper limbs, especially the fingertips, may be radiculopathy of cervical spondylosis.

4. If you rotate your head and neck left and right when closing your eyes and experience migraine or dizziness, you may have vertebral artery type cervical spondylosis.

5. When you suddenly lower your head, it may cause numbness all over your body or an electric shock-like sensation. This may be spinal cord type cervical spondylosis with spinal canal stenosis.

Figure 1: Tingling in the fingertips caused by cervical spondylotic radiculopathy (copyrighted image not authorized for reproduction)

2. How to deal with cervical spondylosis

In recent years, cervical spondylosis has become younger and younger. For mild cervical spondylosis, timely attention and changing bad living habits can prevent or alleviate the onset of the disease to a certain extent.

1. Maintain a correct posture

Many people lower their heads or stretch their heads when working at a desk, and maintain the same posture for a long time, which is very bad for the cervical spine. When people lower their heads, the cervical spine will be under great pressure, and the normal physiological curvature will gradually disappear, and even the cervical spine will be arched. At this time, the muscles on the back of the cervical spine are in a stretched state, and then a series of symptoms such as stiffness and soreness will appear. When playing with a mobile phone or computer, you should maintain a correct sitting posture, that is, keep the neck upright in the upper body to support the head, straighten the waist in the lower body, bend the knees naturally to 90 degrees, and maintain a sitting posture with both feet on the ground. After sitting for a while, relax and rest appropriately.

2. Choose a pillow of appropriate height when sleeping

The pillow can keep the head and lumbar spine balanced and avoid cervical spine pressure. Generally speaking, the height of the pillow should be 6 to 10 cm. For people who are used to lying on their backs, the height of the pillow should be consistent with the height of their fists; for people who are used to sleeping on their sides, the height of the pillow should be consistent with the width of one shoulder. If the pillow is too high, the cervical spine will be in a state of bowing even when sleeping, which will increase the burden on the cervical spine.

3. Cervical spine exercises

When you have been working or studying at a desk for more than an hour, you should take the initiative to do some neck exercises. Cervical exercises mainly relieve neck fatigue by simply and gently turning the head and neck up and down, left and right. However, it should be noted that although cervical exercises have the effect of preventing cervical spondylosis, they are mainly suitable for people who work at a desk for a long time and have mild cervical spondylosis. Patients with severe cervical spondylosis symptoms should use them with caution. If neck discomfort has affected work and life, you should seek medical attention in time for systematic examinations and professional treatment.