What are the dangers of office workers often sleeping on their desks?

　　In winter, many office workers have made some adjustments to their work and rest schedules. They only have about an hour of rest time at noon. In order to be more energetic when working in the afternoon, many office workers choose to lie down on their desks and squint for a while to relieve their fatigue in the morning. However, sleeping on the desks will cause certain damage to the spine. At this time, the cervical spine bends backward, which is opposite to the normal physiological curvature of the cervical spine that bulges forward. So, what are the dangers of office workers often sleeping on their desks? Let’s take a look at them below.

　　1. Cervical radiculopathy

　　The most obvious feeling after waking up from sleeping on the table is a stiff neck and numbness and weakness in the arms. If the symptoms become severe and affect daily work, you should be alert to cervical spondylosis. According to Wen Shifeng, sleeping on the table is most likely to cause cervical spondylotic radiculopathy. This is because the relaxation of the cervical and shoulder ligaments increases intervertebral disc degeneration, which in turn causes the cervical intervertebral annulus to rupture, causing the nucleus pulposus to protrude backward and compress the nerve roots.

　　The clinical manifestation is neck, shoulder and back pain. Patients often have neck and shoulder muscle tension, and even radiating pain, numbness, and weakness in the upper limbs and fingers. During the examination, the doctor may find that the neck is straight, the neck muscles are spasmed, the head prefers to tilt to the affected side, and the shoulders are shrugged.

　　2. Cervical spondylotic myelopathy

　　“Cervical spondylotic myelopathy occurs when a herniated disc compresses or irritates the spinal cord and accompanying blood vessels. What's even worse is that patients will gradually experience decreased muscle strength in their lower limbs, even difficulty walking, and decreased flexibility in their upper limbs and hands. ”Wen Shifeng told the author that although cervical spondylotic myelopathy is relatively rare, its symptoms are severe and often develops in a subtle way. It is easy to be misdiagnosed as other diseases and delay treatment.

　　It is reported that due to the degeneration and proliferation of the cervical vertebrae bony structure and the degeneration of adjacent soft tissues (such as intervertebral disc herniation, bone spurs at the posterior edge of the vertebral body, ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament, hypertrophy or calcification of the ligamentum flavum, etc.), direct compression of the spinal cord, coupled with the influence of dynamic factors such as strenuous exercise or long-term bad posture, leads to spinal cord compression or spinal cord ischemia, and subsequently spinal cord dysfunction.

　　Clinical manifestations include numbness and weakness in the limbs, inability to move, a belting sensation in the chest and abdomen, and a feeling of stepping on cotton when walking.

　　3. Nerve entrapment can directly cause hand paralysis

　　According to Wen Shifeng, the more serious situation of sleeping on the table is that it causes muscle tension to directly compress the nerves, which can lead to hand paralysis in severe cases. It is reported that in the past, many alcoholic men in Russia fell down to sleep directly after drinking. Because they maintained the same posture and compressed the brachial plexus or important blood vessels, they woke up to find that one upper limb was paralyzed.

　　4. Lumbar disc herniation

　　Like the cervical spine, excessive stretching of muscles and ligaments will cause degeneration of the lumbar intervertebral discs. The lumbar 4/5 space and the lumbar 5/sacral 1 space, which are usually under the heaviest pressure and have the greatest range of motion, bear the brunt and are prone to lumbar disc herniation.

　　For office workers, you should try your best to adjust your life patterns and eat foods that are helpful for health. If you also have a lunch break habit, you must pay attention to your sleeping position.