What is a bone spur? Bone spurs, also known as osteophytes, are extra bones growing on the edges of normal bones and joints. They are most common in middle-aged and elderly people after the age of 45, and they occur in weight-bearing areas with high mobility, such as the cervical and lumbar vertebrae of the crest and the knee joints of the lower extremities. The causes of osteophytes are generally believed to be: in the crest, the intervertebral disc degenerates into chronic strain, causing instability between the vertebrae, and the intervertebral ligaments are repeatedly stretched, causing bleeding and hematoma in the attachment of the vertebrae and gradually calcifying and forming bone spurs; in the extremity joints, it is due to repeated chronic injuries, degenerative changes in the joints, stretched and bleeding in the attachment of the joint marginal ligaments, and gradually ossifying and ossifying. Bone spurs are formed. Are bone spurs really that terrible? The formation of osteophytes has a beneficial effect on the human body, i.e., it increases the stability of the crest and joints, limits the movement in certain directions, balances the local stress, and helps prevent further injury. Of course, there is also a negative side, depending on where the bone spur grows. If the osteophyte compresses the crestal medulla and nerves or causes narrowing of the canal, it can produce a series of symptoms, such as pain, numbness, limping, and in severe cases, paralysis. How to treat osteophytes properly and under what circumstances they should be treated is a concern for many middle-aged and elderly people. Some people are psychologically burdened and very nervous after they find out that they have osteophytes after taking X-rays, which is really unnecessary. First of all, osteophytes are a process of physiological degenerative changes in the bone and joint. With age, every middle-aged and old people will appear, just as people’s eyes will “presbyopia” in old age, can not be considered a disease; secondly, as far as most people are concerned, osteophytes are not the same as a disease, no symptoms do not need to be treated; thirdly, osteophytes can be relieved by appropriate rest, physical therapy, closure and medication if the symptoms of compression are light. Some drugs, such as bone spur pain relieving liquid, bone spur tablets, vinegar therapy, etc., do not eliminate bone spurs, but eliminate the symptoms through the pharmacological effects of relaxing the tendons and activating the joints, moving the qi and relieving pain, expelling wind and dispelling dampness. Only a very small number of patients with osteophytes that produce heavy pressure symptoms need to be treated with an appropriate surgical procedure after careful diagnosis by a doctor. Is there a remedy to remove the “bone spur”? Bone growths are usually found around both ends of the bone, but on a flat radiograph, they may appear as a thick spur with a wide base and a thin tip. This is called a “spur” for ease of description. No medication has been found to eliminate the bone growth (i.e., the “bone spur” that appears on the radiograph). The reason for this is very simple: laboratory tests have shown that the bone growth is similar to the original bone structure and has the same composition. If the bone growth can be “eliminated” or “melted” away, then all the bones in the body will be “digested” at the same time. So, can the bone spur be worn away by constant activity? When a person suffers from osteophytes and has a “bone spur”, some people always tell him that if you move more, the bone spur will be worn away! Even the patient said that an orthopedic surgeon at a major hospital also cautioned him: “Don’t be afraid of bone spurs, you just have to keep moving every day and they will be gone!” This reference is obviously wrong, and it is this absurd perception that delays and aggravates the condition of many patients. Why is this view incorrect? Because if a part of the bone joint is stressed beyond the adaptive strength that the bone and cartilage can withstand, it causes osteophytes to form bone spurs. In fact, osteophytes are a way for the body to respond to forces that exceed the ability of the bone and joint to withstand and distribute them evenly, reducing the strength of the force. Therefore, according to the mechanism of the formation of “bone spurs”, the idea of increasing the strength of the activity to grind away the “bone spurs” will certainly be contrary to the wish, and can only increase the strength of the role of more than the bone joints can withstand, which will inevitably promote the development of its increase, but will not grind away the “bone spurs”, especially in the lower limb joints. Generally speaking, when the force on the bone joint has exceeded the adaptive strength to form a “bone spur”, if you try to reduce the strength of the force to below the adaptive strength, you can delay the occurrence of the “bone spur”, stop the growth and reduce the symptoms. So, is it impossible for a patient with osteophytes to move around? This is not the case. In order to prevent muscle wasting atrophy and joint stiffness, patients with osteophytes need to engage in gentle activities that do not increase the weight and force on the joints, in addition to the appropriate treatment. This activity is purely to exercise the muscles and to maintain and improve joint movement without increasing the weight and force on the bone and joint. Therefore, this type of exercise is a special type of gentle muscle contraction joint exercise. For example, leg flexion and extension exercises while lying in bed are a good exercise. What should I do if I have a bone spur? The treatment of bone spurs is generally considered to be non-surgical, except for a very small number of spurs that require surgery to remove nerves, blood vessels or important organs. The first step is to avoid and reduce overexertion of the lesion. The first step is to avoid overexertion of the lesion and to reduce the discomfort of numbness and soreness. Secondly, during the onset of symptoms, appropriate rest should be taken, while heat therapy, massage, massage or local pain point closure and other treatments should be carried out to reduce pain. Chinese medicine ion introduction therapy can relax the tendons and blood, reduce swelling and pain, improve local blood circulation, and is used to treat bone spurs with certain efficacy. Thirdly, medication is also a non-negligible means in the whole rehabilitation treatment measures. Commonly used drugs include bone spur tablets, chondroitin sulfate A, compound chondroitin tablets, compound salvia tablets, vitamin E, etc. For those with obvious pain symptoms, pain-relieving and sedative drugs, such as Fenbendazole, Ampicillin, etc., can be given. For those with numbness symptoms, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, and nerve-nourishing drugs such as ATP can be chosen to assist in the treatment. In addition, through the publicity and general knowledge of professional institutions, patients can learn some health and hygiene knowledge and increase their understanding of the disease, which is conducive to self-care, prevention and treatment of the disease.