Sciatica

Pain Management and Sciatica
Sciatica is a common type of pain affecting the sciatic nerve, a large nerve extending
from the lower back down the back of each leg.
What Are the Symptoms of Sciatica?
Common symptoms of sciatica include:
Lower back pain
Pain in the rear or leg that is worse when sitting
Hip pain
Burning or tingling down the leg
Weakness, numbness, or difficulty moving the leg or foot
A constant pain on one side of the rear
A shooting pain that makes it difficult to stand up
Sciatica usually affects only one side of the lower body. Often, the pain extends from
the lower back all the way through the back of the thigh and down through the leg.
Depending on where the sciatic nerve is affected, the pain may also extend to the
foot or toes.
For some people, the pain from sciatica can be severe and debilitating. For others,
the sciatica pain might be infrequent and irritating, but has the potential to get worse.
Seek immediate medical attention if you have progressive lower extremity weakness,
numbness in the upper thighs, and/or loss of bladder or bowel control.
What Causes Sciatica?
Sciatica is caused by irritation of the root(s) of the lower lumbar and lumbosacral
spine.
Additional common causes of sciatica include:
Lumbar spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal in the lower back)
Degenerative disc disease (breakdown of discs, which act as cushions
between the vertebrae)
Spondylolisthesis (a condition in which one vertebra slips forward over
another one)
Pregnancy
Muscle spasm in the back or buttocks
Other things that may make your back pain worse include being overweight, not
exercising regularly, wearing high heels, or sleeping on a mattress that is too soft.
What You Need to Know About Sciatica

Sciatica, which is pain along the large sciatic nerve that runs from the lower back
down the back of each leg, can cause severe, debilitating pain. This article reviews
the 6 possible causes of sciatica, full range of symptoms, and surgical and
nonsurgical sciatica treatment options.
The term sciatica describes the symptoms of leg painand possibly tingling,
numbness, or weaknessthat originate in the lower back and travel through the
buttock and down the large sciatic nerve in the back of each leg.
Sciatica (pronounced sigh-at-eh-kah) is not a medical diagnosis in and of itselfit is
a symptom of an underlying medical condition. Common lower back problems that
can cause sciatica symptoms include a lumbar herniated disc, degenerative disc
disease, spondylolisthesis, or spinal stenosis.
Sciatica Nerve Pain
Sciatica is often characterized by one or more of the following symptoms:
Constant pain in only one side of the buttock or leg (rarely in both legs)
Pain that is worse when sitting

Leg pain that is often described as burning, tingling, or searing (versus a dull
ache)
Weakness, numbness, or difficulty moving the leg, foot, and/or toes
A sharp pain that may make it difficult to stand up or walk
Pain that radiates down the leg and possibly into the foot and toes (it rarely
occurs only in the foot)
Sciatic pain can vary from infrequent and irritating to constant and incapacitating.
Symptoms are usually based on the location of the pinched nerve.
While symptoms can be painful and potentially debilitating, it is rare that permanent
sciatic nerve damage (tissue damage) will result, and spinal cord involvement is
possible but rare.
The Sciatic Nerve and Sciatica
The sciatic nerve is the largest single nerve in the body and is made up of individual
nerve roots that start by branching out from the spine in the lower back and then
combine to form the "sciatic nerve." Sciatica symptoms occur when the large sciatic
nerve is irritated or compressed at or near its point of origin.
The sciatic nerve starts in the lower back, typically at lumbar segment 3 (L3).
At each level of the lower spine a nerve root exits from the inside of the spinal
canal, and each of these respective nerve roots then come together to form
the large sciatic nerve.
The sciatic nerve runs from the lower back, through the buttock, and down the
back of each leg.
Portions of the sciatic nerve then branch out in each leg to innervate certain
parts of the legthe thigh, calf, foot, and toes.
The specific sciatica symptomsthe leg pain, numbness, tingling, weakness, and
possibly symptoms that radiate into the footlargely depend on where the nerve is
pinched. For example, a lumbar segment 5 (L5) nerve impingement can cause
weakness in extension of the big toe and potentially in the ankle.
The Course of Sciatica Pain
Sciatica rarely occurs before age 20, and becomes more commonplace in middle
age. It is most likely to develop around age 40 or 50.
Perhaps because the term sciatica is often used loosely to describe leg pain,
estimates of its prevalence vary widely. Some researchers have estimated it will
affect up to 43% of the population at some point.
Often, a particular event or injury does not cause sciaticarather it tends to develop
over time.
The vast majority of people who experience sciatica get better within a few weeks or
months and find pain relief with nonsurgical sciatica treatment. For others, however,
the leg pain from a pinched nerve can be severe and debilitating.
Seeing a doctor for sciatica pain is advised, both for learning how to reduce the pain
and to check for the possibility of a serious medical issue.
When Sciatica Is Serious
Certain sciatica symptoms, while rare, require immediate medical, and possibly
surgical, intervention. These include, but are not limited to, progressive neurological
symptoms (e.g. leg weakness) and/or bowel or bladder dysfunction (cauda equina
syndrome). Infection or spinal tumors can also cause sciatica.
Because sciatica is caused by an underlying medical condition, treatment is focused
on addressing the cause of symptoms rather than just the symptoms. Treatment is
usually self-care and/or nonsurgical, but for severe or intractable pain and
dysfunction it may be advisable to consider surgery.
https://nydnrehab.com/what-we-treat/back-pain-and-neck-pain/sciatica/

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Pain Management and Sciatica

What You Need to Know About Sciatica

Pain that is worse when sitting

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