SCIATICA/RADIATING LOW BACK PAIN.

Sciatica pain can be devastating in your daily routine. This is the pain in your back radiating to the thigh and/or calf region.

If your back pain is worsened by sitting for long, bending, rising from a chair or getting off the bed, and radiating to the buttock and legs, then you’re likely to have sciatica.

Signs and symptoms.

• Radicular leg pain.
• Back/buttock pain.
• Numbness of the thigh/leg.
• Muscle weakness
• Tingling/hot/cold/burning sensation on the legs.
• Change on gait pattern/how you walk.

Causes.

Sciatica can occur suddenly with intermittent or continuous symptoms. This type is usually worsened by coughing/sneezing or during defecation.

Other causes include;

• Spinal stenosis; is the narrowing of intervertebral disc space.
• Spondylosis; is a degenerative disease of intervertebral bodies.
• Spinal inflammation results in compression of the sciatic nerve.
• Pregnancy.
• Spinal tumours among others.

Any condition that results in compression of the sciatic nerve, will result in sciatica pain.

Treatment and management

Before treatment, an examination is usually done starting from the history to physical examination and imaging if necessary.

This is to determine the exact location of the problem, the cause and it guides in treatment.

Other conditions like piriformis syndrome, lumbar muscle spasms; sacroiliac dysfunction may reproduce symptoms mimicking sciatica.

Treatment is usually conservative; that’s physiotherapy, activity modification and medication if need be.

In severe cases, steroid injections and surgery are recommended.

Preventing sciatica

• Always be active
• Carry recommended weight in relation to your weight and strength
• Do both aerobic and strength exercises as discussed before.
• Visit your physician or physiotherapist and have regular checkups, once or twice isn’t bad.
• Use proper footwear.

This is just a summary, we will be talking about it in detail.