Sciatica
What is Sciatica?
Sciatica is defined as pain or discomfort associated with the sciatic nerve and can be a real problem for a lot of people. Sciatica is where there is an irritation of the sciatic nerve which runs from the lower back down to the buttocks and into the back of the legs to the feet. It is the longest nerve in the body and can be compressed or irritated by a narrowing of where the nerve leaves the spine or by connective tissue and muscle along the nerves route down the body. This compression/irritation of the nerve causes pain to radiate down the nerve route and can be very uncomfortable, affect your mobility and sometimes strength of the leg.
What do I do if I have sciatica?
Firstly, if you do have these symptoms it is important to see a medical professional quickly as there are quite a few different ailments that can feel the same. Hamstring tears, sacroiliac joint dysfunction, lumbar facet joint dysfunction, damaged inter-vertebral discs and stenosis of the spine can all give very similar symptoms. However, they will all require very different treatment and therefore will need to be assessed for the correct course of treatment to be given.
Symptoms.
Symptoms for Sciatica include but are not limited to:
- Pain in the back and glutes (bum muscles)
- Pain radiating down the back or outside of the leg
- Difficulty striding out when walking
- Restriction in bending forwards or backwards
- Inability to get comfortable sitting or lying
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Treatment.
Our practitioners will spend the initial appointment discussing your back pain history as well as gathering information about your activities of daily living. This will allow us to develop a treatment plan that will both fit in with your life and get you back doing the things you love. Your treatment will involve manual therapy techniques such as spinal mobilisation, spinal manipulation and soft tissue massage manipulation along with developing a rehabilitation plan that you can build into your life. Our aim is to use techniques from all the disciplines such as physiotherapy, osteopathy and chiropractic to deliver a treatment that is effective and also catered to you.
If you have any further questions you are welcome to contact us or simply book an appointment and we can get you on the road too recovery.