Sciatica Treatment
Sciatica Treatment
Premier Osteo & Functional Medicine
Clinic
Our Premier Osteopaths in North Shore, Auckland have the expertise and experience to diagnose and treat your Sciatica pain.
We specialise in finding the underlying cause for your sciatica pain and treating your whole body, postures and lifestyle factors that could be contributing to your pain, numbness, tingling, pins & needles and/or muscle weakness in your back and/or down your leg.
We will make sure you:
Understand the cause of your Sciatica
Know how long it will take for you to get better
Get fantastic hands on Osteopathic treatment fix your whole body
Are provide with your home exercise, posture & lifestyle plan
What is Sciatica
Sciatica is caused by an irritation or compression of the sciatic nerve that travels down the back of the leg.
Sciatica is a relatively common form of lower back pain and leg pain. However, the true meaning of the term is often misunderstood. Sciatica is a set of symptoms rather than a diagnosis for what is irritating the root of the nerve, causing the pain. This point is important, because treatment for sciatica or sciatic symptoms will often be different, depending upon the underlying cause of the symptoms.
The location of the symptoms are in some or all of these areas: the lower back, buttocks, saddle region, upper leg, lower leg and/or foot. It generally only occurs on one side of the body. Some of the symptoms can include;
Pain - Sharp or aching
Weakness
Numbness
Tingling or pins and needles
Burning pain or a spider type tickle sensation.
Sciatica Anatomy
The sciatic nerve happens to be the longest and largest nerve in the body. At the point where it is the largest, it has the width of a thumb. The sciatic nerve begins in the lower back as the nerve roots leave the spinal cord through the gaps in between the bones in the lower (lumbar) spine. The nerve then extends the entire length of the leg and into the foot. The sciatic nerve is made up of five nerve roots, which start at the bottom two lower vertebrae. The sciatic nerve travels down the back of the leg and then it branches out to different parts of the leg providing sensory and motor functions along the way all the way down to the foot.
Causes of Sciatica
Disc prolapse – a “slipped disc” is one of the most common causes of sciatica. As the disc bulges or prolapses backwards, it can touch the sciatic nerve sending pain down the back of the leg.
Spondylolisthesis – this is a slippage in the vertebrae (usually a slippage forwards) which can pinch the sciatic nerve or narrow the spinal canal.
Piriformis syndrome – the sciatic nerve can become trapped by the piriformis syndrome if the piriformis (buttock) muscle becomes too tight.
Space occupying lesion – anything that occupies a space around the nerve could cause sciatica, such as a tumour or cyst. This is less common that the three causes above.
How Premier Osteo & Functional Medicine Clinic Can Help Your Sciatica Pain
We will do a comprehensive examination to establish what is causing the nerve pain. Often this type of pain is due to muscles and joints irritating the nerves, which we can successfully treat. However, if we feel that you need further investigation we will refer you to a specialist.
Treatments
We will educate you on the condition, what you should and should not do at home, postures, time frames with healing and ways to prevent re-injury.
Joint mobilization and/or manipulation to restore full movement of all involved vertebra.
Soft tissue massage for pain relief and to release muscle spasm.
Core stability/strengthening programmes to stabilize the abdominal region.
Progressive stretching programmes facilitate a return to full mobility.
Guidance on gradual return to sport/activities.
Postural correction and strategies to prevent recurrence.
How to Treat Sciatica:
There are methods to treat sciatica at home. However, because this could also be a symptoms for a different medical condition, you should always get this checked out. In some cases of sciatica, o treatment at all is necessary and the condition will go away all by itself. In the short term, you could take an anti-inflammatory medicine such as ibuprofen or aspirin. You may also want to treat the area with ice and heat. If treating in this method you should apply ice to the injured site for 5 – 10 minutes at a time three to five times per day. Do that for the first 2 or 3 days and then switch to heat. Reduce your activity for a few days and then begin to slowly work back up to your usual level. Avoid twisting your back or any heavy lifting for at least 6 weeks after the pain starts. Avoid ALL forward bending (or as much as possible). In 12 weeks you can resume exercising paying special attention to movements that will strengthen both your abdomen and the flexibility of the spine. Physical therapy, osteopathy and/or chiropractic is also an option that is recommended. If physical therapy is unsuccessful, it may be that the nerve is too severely pinched. The next step is usually an MRI scan to determine how bad the pathology is. Following an MRI, a consultant may wish to do an injection or epidural into the spine to reduce inflammation on the sciatic nerve roots.