Bone hyperplasia is an abnormal change in the shape of bone tissue during development and growth, resulting in irregular formations such as spurs, lip-like, wavy, or round shapes. It is a normal physiological phenomenon in the human body and commonly occurs in the cervical spine, lumbar spine, hip, knee, ankle, heel bone, and upper limbs, particularly in the elbow joint and interphalangeal joints.

bubble_chart Diagnosis

Based on the location of bone hyperplasia and the degree of compression on nerves and blood vessels, cervical spondylosis is classified into four types, each with different clinical manifestations.

1. Nerve root type: This is the most common type. It mainly manifests as pain in the neck and shoulders, caused by the compression of cervical nerve roots by hyperplastic bone.
2. Spinal cord type: It primarily presents as weakness in the limbs, a "walking on cotton" sensation, unstable body balance, and a tendency to fall. This is due to the compression of the cervical spinal cord nerves by hyperplastic bone.
3. Vertebral artery type: The main symptoms include headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and tinnitus, and sudden falls may occur occasionally. The cause is the compression of the cervical vertebral artery by hyperplastic bone, leading to cerebral ischemia and hypoxia.
4. Sympathetic nerve type: This type is relatively rare. It mainly manifests as uneven eye fissure size, unequal pupil size, sometimes blurred vision, dryness on one side of the face, reduced sweating, and possible tachycardia. The reason is the compression of the sympathetic nerves on both sides of the neck by hyperplastic bone.

Currently, there are many methods for treating bone hyperplasia in China, which can be broadly categorized as follows:

1. **Direct Current Drug Ion Introduction Method (also known as physiotherapy):** Drug ions primarily enter the skin through sweat gland ducts, pores, or the gaps between mucous membrane
2. epithelial cells. The physiological therapeutic effects are determined not only by the electrical current but also by the pharmacological properties of the introduced drug ions. This method fully leverages the drug's effects. However, since the introduced drugs are in liquid form and prone to volatilization, their efficacy is not long-lasting, which limits the therapeutic effectiveness of this approach.
3. **Ultraviolet Therapy:** Its therapeutic effects are mainly manifested in the following aspects: (1) Bactericidal effect; (2) Anti-inflammatory effect; (3) Analgesic effect; (4) Promotion of wound healing; (5) Desensitization effect; (6) Promotion of vitamin D₃ formation; (7) Regulation of immune function, etc.
4. **Tuina and Traction:** Tuina helps improve local blood circulation, providing anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects. Traction can alleviate the pressure of bone spurs on local nerves and tissues, offering temporary pain relief. These methods are suitable for cervical and lumbar bone hyperplasia. However, tuina and traction rely entirely on external forces, focusing only on local treatment while neglecting the holistic regulation of the body. Therefore, they can only provide temporary pain relief and cannot achieve the goal of curing the condition.
5. **Acupuncture:** Acupuncture can promote meridian circulation, activate blood flow, and relieve pain. It can also eliminate local edema and inflammation. However, for bone hyperplasia, acupuncture can only serve as an auxiliary treatment.
6. **Western Medicine Treatment:** Currently, Western medicine lacks effective drugs for this condition and often resorts to symptomatic treatment. For example, pain may be managed with antipyretic analgesics; numbness may be treated with B-complex vitamins; joint swelling with effusion may be addressed by local fluid extraction or local block therapy. However, clinical practice has shown that these treatments are not ideal, as they only address symptoms rather than the root cause, making recurrence likely.
7. **Surgical Treatment:** Surgery is not the first-line therapy for bone hyperplasia. It may be considered only when conservative treatments fail and the condition severely affects the patient's quality of life.
8. **Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Treatment:** Since this condition is common and Western medicine lacks ideal treatments, TCM has been widely used in China in recent years, with diverse and innovative methods yielding significant progress. TCM therapies can be broadly divided into two categories: 1. **Internal Treatment:** Including decoctions, pills, powders, wine preparations, etc. 2. **External Treatment:** Such as medicated plasters, topical alcohol-based liniments, fumigation, and compresses. Both internal and external treatments have certain efficacy, but the effects are slow and require time. Renowned bone disease experts Li Fang and Wang Changyong combined the strengths of both approaches to develop a series of formulas, such as "Bone Impediment Capsule" and "Bone Impediment Honeyed Pill," along with the external patch "Kang'er Patch." The simultaneous use of internal and external treatments has significantly improved therapeutic outcomes.