Radiography of the cervical spine

This is a very common diagnostic procedure that can be recommended not only for neck pain, but also for chronic headache of unknown origin, pain in the arms and shoulder blades. The image allows you to examine the condition of the tissues of the bodies and arches of the vertebrae, the size of the intervertebral discs, to detect tumors, hernias and dislocations of the vertebrae.

Doctors are sent to do an X-ray of the cervical spine: an orthopedic traumatologist, a neurologist, a therapist. The main indications for cervical radiography: X-ray is a picture of the cervical spine injury in falls, bumps and other situations. Suspicion or evaluation of the effectiveness of treatment, tracking the dynamics of degenerative-dystrophic diseases of the spine: osteochondrosis, hernias and protrusions of intervertebral discs, spondylosis, arthritis and others. Infectious and systemic diseases that can affect bone, cartilage, and connective tissues – Bechterew's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and others. Congenital or acquired abnormalities in the cervical spine. The main symptoms of such diseases and conditions are neck pain. Frequent or prolonged headaches. Dizziness. Limited head mobility, forced or habitual posture with a tilted head. Numbness, loss of sensitivity in the fingers, impaired facial expressions. A feeling of stiffness in the neck.

The study on a digital device favorably differs in its gentle effect on humans – the level of radiation exposure is so low that it will take several hundred pictures in a short period of time to exceed it. And yet there are situations when X-rays will be offered to be replaced by other diagnostic methods. Relative contraindications for X-rays are: Pregnancy at any time and breastfeeding – there is a threat of disruption of the normal development of the fetus. The child's age is 15 years old. In these cases, if necessary, an X-ray of the cervical spine is performed at the discretion of the attending physician. Severe obesity can also be considered a limitation for X-rays (the information content of the image may not be large enough) and situations when, due to pain syndrome or mental disorders, the patient cannot remain motionless even during the execution of the image. In such cases, the replacement of X-rays with other diagnostic methods is considered.