Cervical instability in the neck has been linked to swallowing difficulties, diagnosed as cervicogenic dysphagia. Cervical instability has been linked to cervical spine nerve compression which can be an “unseen” cause of swallowing difficulties, esophageal spasms, and acid reflux.
Osteophytes of the anterior cervical spine are an established cause of dysphagia. The most likely mechanism of dysphagia is interference with swallowing at the pharyngoesophageal junction, although osteophytes in the lower cervical spine may also interfere with esophageal peristalsis.
According to our clinical observations, degenerative changes in the cervical discs and facet joints and chronic MS dysfunction of the cervical spine facet joints are disorders which can cause swallowing difficulties.
The oesophagus rests in front of the cervical vertebrae from C4-7. A large osteophyte may impinge on the oesophagus causing compression, or compress at the level of the cricoid or upper oesophageal sphincter, or cause an inflammatory response causing discomfort.
Aged-related changes in the cervical spine, including cervical instability, anterior osteophytes, herniated disks, osteoarthritis, and altered cervical curvatures, have been linked to swallowing difficulties, which are diagnosed as CGD.
Cervical instability in the neck has been linked to swallowing difficulties, diagnosed as cervicogenic dysphagia. Cervical instability has been linked to cervical spine nerve compression which can be an “unseen” cause of swallowing difficulties, esophageal spasms, and acid reflux.
For a herniated disk in your neck, you'll typically feel the most pain in your shoulder and arm. This pain might shoot into your arm or leg when you cough, sneeze or move into certain positions. Pain is often described as sharp or burning. Numbness or tingling.
In summary, the relationship between the esophagus and anterior cervical spine has been described from the level of the C5 vertebral body to the C7 vertebral body. The esophagus lies closest to the vertebral bodies and disc spaces in the midline.
Symptoms of C4/C5 and C5/C6 Herniated Discs
In some cases, pain from a C4/C5 and C5/C6 herniated disc can cause pain to radiate down through the neck. The pain may continue through the shoulders, arms, and hands. Tingling, numbness, and weakness are also common symptoms of a cervical herniated disc.
Dysphagia is a relatively common secondary complication that occurs after acute cervical spinal cord injury (SCI). The detrimental consequences of dysphagia in SCI include transient hypoxemia, chemical pneumonitis, atelectasis, bronchospasm, and pneumonia.
To achieve effective swallowing, it is necessary to coordinate and control 50 muscle groups, 6 cerebral nerves (trigeminal, facial, glossopharyngeal, vagus, accessory, and hypoglossal), and 4 cervical nerves (C1, C2, C3, and C4) from the CNS.
One of the main symptoms of a cervical spine disorder is neck pain. You may also have pain in the head, jaw, shoulders, arms, or legs, as well as numbness and weakness. Other problems include impaired coordination or balance, difficulty breathing, or loss of bowel and bladder control.
The most common causes of globus pharyngeus are anxiety and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), a form of acid reflux that causes the stomach's contents to travel back up the food pipe and sometimes into the throat. This can result in muscle spasms that trigger feelings of an object caught in the throat.
A sore throat and neck pain can both occur as a result of mild illnesses, such as a cold, the flu, or strep throat. In most cases, a person with this combination of symptoms does not need to seek immediate treatment. The symptoms should resolve within a few days to a week.
Tightness in the front of the neck can occur as a result of allergies, inflammation, or infection. It could also occur in response to a digestive upset, such as heartburn or GERD. Some causes of tightness in the neck may go away without the need for medical treatment.
When the glossopharyngeal nerve becomes irritated, an attack of intense electric shock-like pain is felt in the back of the throat, tongue, tonsil or ear. You may initially experience short, mild attacks, with periods of remission. But neuralgia can progress, causing longer, frequent attacks of searing pain.
Symptoms of sinusitis
Many people find that they have a build up of pressure within their sinuses which worsens when they lean forward or bend over to pick up something. Other symptoms include: Sore throat caused by infected mucus draining from the nasal cavity into the throat.
A major cause of acid reflux that we see in our clinic has to do with the alignment of your spine. When your spine is misaligned where the sensitive nerves go to the stomach and esophagus, it can cause the symptoms of acid reflux. We have many cases of success when adjusting patients with acid reflux.
Vertebral fractures or malalignments of the spine in the sagittal plane cause kyphosis, which is also associated with hiatal hernia sizes and GERD. The lumbar kyphosis and the vertebral fractures of the lumbar regions are highly related to GERD [12,13].
At first, there may be difficulty with swallowing solid food or pills, but as the narrowing worsens, there may be difficulty with swallowing liquids as well. Patients may also experience heartburn, regurgitation, pain with swallowing, or unintentional weight loss.
C5 and C6 are the most common areas for disc herniation. Symptoms include weakness in the biceps and front of the upper arms, weakness in the wrist extensor muscles, and pain, numbness, and tingling that radiate to the thumb side of the hand.
C5 radiculopathy.
Tingling, numbness, and/or pain may go from the neck into the shoulder and/or down the arm and into the thumb. Weakness may be experienced in the shoulder or upper arm.