Osteochondrosis of the coccyx: what is it, what are the symptoms of the disease, how is treatment carried out using various methods, including gymnastics?

Coccydynia - what is it?

The term “coccydynia” is commonly used to describe a group of diverse pain syndromes that are localized in the coccyx area.
It is also called osteochondrosis of the coccyx or anococcygeal pain syndrome. This condition is characterized by intense periodic or constant pain in the coccyx area in the absence of any spinal disease. This pathology causes many problems in everyday life, interferes with normal movement, causes pain and discomfort.

Due to the structural features of the spine and high mobility of the joints, osteochondrosis of the coccyx most often occurs in women aged 40-60 years. It is important to identify this disease in a timely manner in order to eliminate pain and prevent the condition from worsening.

What's behind the diagnosis?

This disease is accompanied by dystrophic disorders in the cartilaginous structures of the coccygeal spine, as well as changes in the structure of the intervertebral discs. Often, trauma to the coccyx area plays an important role in the development of the disease, and it can occur long before the development of pain.

Causes of sacral osteochondrosis

In order to detect sacral osteochondrosis in time, the symptoms of which are often mild, you need to know for what reason it can develop. It is the sacrum that is affected mainly after injuries or with a hereditary predisposition.

Various back bruises or a fall on the tailbone can cause metabolic and circulatory problems. In these cases, cartilage tissue becomes more susceptible to the development of degenerative processes.

But most often lumbosacral osteochondrosis is diagnosed. The intervertebral disc between these sections is already subject to serious stress. If they are excessive, it begins to collapse.

This happens if a person often lifts weights, engages in heavy physical labor or sports. Excess weight also creates excess pressure on the discs, causing the development of degenerative processes.

But the opposite situation, when a person leads a sedentary lifestyle, can also provoke the development of osteochondrosis of the sacral region. After all, with sedentary work and lack of physical activity, metabolic processes slow down, and blood circulation in the lower part of the body is disrupted.

In addition, the muscular-ligamentous system in such people is weak and cannot support the spine in the correct position.

Causes and types of disease

One of the main reasons for the development of the disease is considered to be uneven distribution of the load on the spine. Other factors that can provoke osteochondrosis of the coccyx include:

Injuries to this area of the spine, including fractures and bruises.
Inflammation of nerve endings and muscles.
Prolonged stay in the wrong position with emphasis on the tailbone.
Postoperative adhesions or scars on the pelvic organs.
Inflammation of internal organs located near the tailbone. This can be cystitis, prostatitis, adnexitis, endometritis, and also colitis.
Inactive and sedentary lifestyle. This provokes salt deposition and other stagnation, which leads to pain.
Excess body weight.
Neurological diseases. Sharp pain in the coccyx or sacrum can be caused by pinching of the sciatic or lumbar nerve.
Tendency to prolonged constipation.
Complications after childbirth in women with a narrow pelvis.

According to the international classification of diseases, it is customary to divide 3 types of coccyx osteochondrosis:

Actually, coccydynia itself, which appears as a result of the negative impact of concomitant diseases on the body.
Pseudococcydynia or pain located at the coccyx.
Anorectal pain, which is characterized by discomfort in the rectum, perineum or genital area.

What it is?

The coccyx is a small bone that ends at the end of the spine. It consists of several fused rudimentary vertebrae. The coccyx does not contain the spinal cord, but is surrounded by a large number of nerve endings that go from top to bottom. Despite the rudimentary nature of this bone, many important muscles are attached to it, which are involved in the processes of urination and defecation. Coccydynia is a pathological condition in which a person regularly or periodically experiences pain in the tailbone.

Symptoms

In addition to painful sensations, it is worth highlighting a number of additional symptoms of osteochondrosis of the coccyx, by which the disease can be identified:

Depression, anxiety, insomnia, which lead to headaches and vasomotor disorders.
Disorders of the pelvic organs, which can manifest as constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, urological problems and others.
Gait disturbances, stiffness and changes in the foot.
Pale skin, sweating during an attack of pain.
Cardiopalmus.

Nature of pain

Initially, painful sensations in the tailbone occur in a sitting position, but disappear in a lying position. Over time, this tendency goes away, and the pain begins to bother you at night, causing insomnia. Gradually, the pain becomes unbearable, and patients describe it as aching or dull.

Pain in the tailbone is intermittent, can come in attacks, but sometimes can be regular. The body reacts to pain with increased sweating and pale skin. At the same time, it can even be difficult for the patient to explain the location of the pain, as a result of which it becomes difficult to control it, and for many, the gait changes.

Diagnostics

Initially, if you complain of pain in the coccyx area and consult a doctor, a general examination of the patient is carried out.
The examination is carried out visually, the presence of changes in the bone is determined by palpation, examination in the knee-elbow position is especially important. The frequency and nature of pain, the presence of concomitant diseases are revealed. To accurately diagnose the condition, it is also necessary to conduct such types of examination as:

General blood and urine analysis.
Ultrasound of the pelvic organs.
X-ray.
Computed tomography.
Magnetic resonance imaging.
Colonoscopy.

One method of confirming the diagnosis is a test injection of an anesthetic into the affected area. If the pain quickly disappears, then the patient has osteochondrosis of the coccyx.

Treatment

Treatment of osteochondrosis of any kind takes quite a long time. It includes a whole range of procedures, including medication, preventive procedures, physical exercise, manual therapy, correction of neurological disorders, traditional methods, and in serious cases, surgical intervention.

Medication

Treatment with medications is primarily aimed at eliminating pain, using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

To relieve muscle spasms, drugs such as Tolperil, Mydocalm and others are used.
For stress and anxiety, the use of special psychotropic drugs is recommended, including Novopassit, Amitriptyline and others.

How to relieve pain?

In order to relieve pain due to osteochondrosis of the coccyx, doctors most often use NSAIDs or anesthetics. It can be:

pills;
injections;
ointments for rubbing into the affected area.

To eliminate pain, Diclofenac, Nimulid and Butadione are most often used in different forms.
Injections of Lidocaine or Leocaine solution are used as anesthetics.

Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy procedures used to treat the disease include:

Rectal darsonvalization.
Paraffin applications.
Mud wraps.
Magnetotherapy.
UHF.
Laser therapy.
Ultrasound procedures.
Acupuncture.

Therapeutic exercise and gymnastics

The effectiveness of treatment is achieved by special therapeutic exercises, which are selected depending on the degree of development of the disease and the characteristics of the body. Such exercises can be performed at home or in specialized centers under the supervision of specialists. They help alleviate the condition and act as an effective method of preventing osteochondrosis of the coccyx.

Useful exercises

There are many different sets of physical exercises to treat the disease, below is one of them:

Exercise with a ball. In a lying position, you need to hold the ball between your knees and feet, squeezing it for a few seconds and pulling your tailbone back.
While lying on your back, you need to throw your legs behind your head and remain in this position for some time.
While lying on your stomach, you should raise your legs and arms as high as possible.
Lying on your back, you need to grab your bent knees and pull them to your chest, while making oscillatory movements back and forth.

It is better to carry out such a complex under the supervision of a specialist, so that he can monitor the correctness of its implementation and stop the exercise if he feels unwell.

Surgical intervention

Surgery is considered a last resort in treating the disease. It can be performed when other treatment methods have failed. It is an operation to remove the coccyx.

Folk remedies

Treatment of the disease can be supplemented with folk recipes:

You can regularly apply potato tincture to your tailbone.
Rubbing lavender solution effectively relieves pain.
To strengthen bones and ligaments, you can take wheat sprouts.
Taking rosehip tincture daily is very effective for osteochondrosis.
An excellent remedy for osteochondrosis is horse chestnut balm.
Rubbing a mixture of radish juice and honey perfectly relieves pain and inflammation.

Treatment of coccyx osteochondrosis

Treatment of coccygeal osteochondrosis is complex and quite lengthy. In addition to therapeutic measures, it will require changes in the patient’s lifestyle: physical activity, self-control of posture, selection of the stiffness of the chair and mattress.

Pregnant women need to wear a bandage that reduces the load on the pelvic floor.

For acute pain conditions, medications are prescribed.

Drug treatment

The use of medications for osteochondrosis of the coccyx is intended to anesthetize damaged tissue areas, relieve inflammation, and restore vertebral mobility.

The following groups of drugs are prescribed:

Non-steroidal analgesics with anti-inflammatory effect: Indomethacin, Naproxen, Nimesulide, etc.;
Muscle relaxants that relieve muscle tension: Mydocalm, Baclofen, Tizanidine;
Local anesthetics (in the form of injections into the affected areas);
Warming ointments, creams - Voltaren, Fastum-gel, Butadion, Finalgon.

Naproxen

Mydocalm

Voltaren

Butadion

Physiotherapy

Physiotherapeutic procedures give good results for coccygeal osteochondrosis. They are prescribed by a doctor to improve blood circulation, metabolic processes in the pelvic area, reduce pain and inflammation.

A course of massage treatments significantly alleviates the patient's condition. The chiropractor uses his fingers to relieve pain by relaxing the pelvic floor muscles and rectal area.

In addition to massage, you can be offered the following types of physiotherapy:

Darsonvalization with high-frequency pulse currents;
Ultrasound treatment;
Paraffin applications;
Healing mud;
Electrophoresis;
Laser treatment.

Consequences

Such a serious disease as osteochondrosis cannot pass without leaving a trace; most often you have to give up your usual way of life. Consequences after illness include indigestion, depression, malfunction of the genitourinary system, and decreased immunity.

In this case, men may develop impotence, and women may experience pain during sexual intercourse.

Prevention

It is easier to prevent any disease than to deal with its consequences. Various preventive measures that must be followed will help avoid the occurrence of osteochondrosis of the coccyx.

Lifestyle

One of the preventive measures is maintaining a correct lifestyle:

It is better to have orthopedic furniture for the workplace, such as a special chair or a chair cushion.
Winter shoes should be comfortable, without slippery soles, this will prevent slipping and the risk of injury in winter.
Clothing should also be comfortable, without tight seams, allowing you to move freely and sit straight.
Avoid a sedentary lifestyle. Whenever possible, it is necessary to perform simple and easy exercises for the spine.

Strengthening procedures

good way to prevent and treat osteochondrosis. Preventative massage is recommended once a week for 1-2 months. Honey massage is considered especially effective, in which honey dissolved in water should be rubbed into the skin with massage movements, and then covered with a warm blanket and lie down for half an hour.

The most effective among bath procedures can be considered a white turpentine bath, for which a mixture of water, baby soap, acetylsalicylic acid tablets and gum turpentine is used.

Pregnancy and childbirth

Women are often concerned about the possibility of pregnancy and successful childbirth with a diagnosis of “osteochondrosis of the coccyx,” because this period is characterized by additional stress on the lumbar region and pelvic organs.

Many medications recommended for illness are undesirable during pregnancy, as they can cause complications in the form of bleeding. For pregnant women, treatment can be carried out using mud baths, special gymnastic complexes, acupuncture and compresses from essential oils.

All of the above procedures can be carried out under the supervision of the attending physician, gynecologist and neurologist.

Causes of coccydynia/tailbone pain

There are many causes of coccydynia. However, the most common causes are a direct fall and damage to the sacrococcygeal joint. These types of traumatic injuries can occur in cases such as a blow to the tailbone, a fall on ice, or during winter sports. Other common causes, exclusive to women, are pregnancy and childbirth. During the last three months of pregnancy, a woman's body releases certain hormones that cause ligaments to soften and bones to become more mobile. Increased mobility can lead to permanent sprains and inflammation of the tissues surrounding the tailbone. In approximately one third of cases, the cause of coccydynia is unknown.

Recommendations from experts

The desired effect in the treatment of osteochondrosis of the coccyx cannot be achieved without a review of nutrition. It is necessary to limit yourself in eating fatty, smoked and flour foods. It is better to give preference to foods of plant origin.

You should not self-medicate for osteochondrosis of the coccyx, as this can lead to undesirable consequences and serious complications. Any traditional methods aimed at treating the disease must be agreed with the attending physician.

It is necessary to exclude any spinal injuries and lead a healthy active lifestyle.

When the first symptoms of osteochondrosis of the coccyx appear, it is important to consult a doctor in a timely manner, conduct a diagnosis and begin treatment. In this case, it is necessary to follow all the doctor’s instructions, attend recommended classes to eliminate pain and get rid of the disease in a short time. Properly selected procedures and a balanced diet will guarantee effective treatment.

Which doctor should I contact if my tailbone hurts?

First, it is necessary to exclude injury to the lower spinal column. To do this, visit a traumatologist at Oleg Savyak’s clinic. If the assumption is not confirmed, you will be referred to a chiropractor . The specialist will realign displaced vertebrae, restore healthy muscle function and relax pinched nerve endings.

After a thorough diagnosis, you may need the help of doctors in other fields: gynecologist, urologist, gastroenterologist . In this case, the tailbone can be absolutely healthy - the pain simply radiates to the lower back. However, it is more reliable to start the examination in a highly specialized center - the Institute of Spinal Rehabilitation. Vertebrologists at the Savyak Clinic will be able to identify musculoskeletal pathologies even at an early stage.