Your spinal cord contains an essential network of nerves that branch off all around the body. These nerves are susceptible to compression as a result of injury, herniation, or gradual wear and tear in the spinal bones that protect them. Such nerve compression can lead to a range of symptoms, including pain, based on which nerve gets pinched. Sciatica pain is a form of nerve pain that occurs as a result of compression in the sciatic nerve present in the lower part of the spine. This often leads to pain in the lower back that continues down the legs. You can get sciatica pain relief with advanced spine therapy at top medical institutions like QI Spine Clinic.
Before knowing how you can get conservative treatment for the sciatica nerve, you should be aware of the sciatica symptoms to be able to identify the problem right away and seek prompt treatment. Pain in the lower back is the most distinctive sign. This pain starts in your lower back and traverses down the legs through the hips, buttocks, and calves to the feet on one or both legs. This occurs primarily due to nerve irritation. There are many other distinct sciatica symptoms that you should be aware of, such as:
- A pull sensation from the lower back to the buttocks and thigh that further extends from the calf to the foot
- A pain in your buttocks or leg that worsens due to prolonged sitting
- Numbness in your leg or foot
- Tingling sensation in your lower body
- Persistent pain on one side of your buttocks
- Muscle weakness in the distressful leg or foot
- Shooting pain down the leg, which makes it tough to stand up or extend the knee
- Pain in one part of the leg while numbness in another part
- A sensation of pins/needles only in toes or feet
Your sciatica symptoms may arise due to a number of underlying conditions, including injury, herniation, and degeneration due to ageing. When you get sciatica pain, the vertebrae in the spine may slip forward, or discs may weaken over time, which may cause your sciatic nerve to get compressed. These situations may occur due to several underlying conditions, which include the following.
- Herniated or Slipped Disc: Discs are cushions between two vertebrae which can become pressurised causing the discs to bulge out, applying pressure on the sciatica nerve.
- Spine Stenosis: Abnormal narrowing of the spinal canal through which the nerve bundles pass can also pinch the root of the sciatic nerve, causing painful symptoms.
- Spondylolisthesis: This occurs when one of the vertebrae slips out of position, narrowing the opening of the nerve exits.
- Piriformis Syndrome: It is a rare neuromuscular medical condition that happens when the piriformis muscle becomes tight/stressed, puts pressure, and irritates the sciatic nerve.
- Degenerative Spine: Gradual degradation and tear in the spinal structures may press against the sciatic nerve.
Having weak spinal muscles, experiencing a back injury, wearing heels frequently, being obese or pregnant, and prolonged sitting or standing or making repetitive bending and lifting movements are also some of the risk factors of sciatica pain. While many of these risk factors may not be avoidable, you can certainly choose non-invasive, conservative methods of pain management for your sciatica symptoms. At QI Spine Clinic, we emphasise accurate diagnosis and treatment of your spine conditions to ensure appropriate treatment for your problems. Our innovative Digital Spine Analysis (DSA) technology enables us to pinpoint your problem area and investigate the weak spinal muscles further.
To address your sciatica symptoms, our spine specialists at QI Spine Clinic encourage stretching exercises that help relax the nerve and provide temporary nerve pain reduction. Based on your DSA diagnosis report, we employ patented Cell Repair Technology which uses Frequency Specific Microcurrents (FSM) to stimulate the affected region and trigger healing and pain reduction. For advanced pain management, our spine specialists collaborate with our physiotherapy experts to provide in-depth spine rehabilitation using isolation therapy. In case conservative methods of sciatica treatment fail to provide symptom relief, our spine doctors may also recommend undergoing surgical treatment as a last resort.
If you have been experiencing sciatica symptoms, don't delay diagnosis. Consult our best spine specialists at QI Spine Clinic for advanced spine pain relief.
