About the condition: Sciatica is not a disease but the name given to any sort of pain that is caused by irritation or compression of the sciatic nerve.
The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in your body. It runs from the back of your pelvis, through your buttocks, and all the way down both legs, ending at your feet.
When something compresses or irritates the sciatic nerve, it can cause a pain that radiates out from your lower back and travels down your leg to your calf.
Sciatica is commonly caused by irritation of joints of the lower back most frequently the sacro-iliac joints between the base of the spine (the sacrum) and the pelvis. Other common causes are ‘slipped discs’ or disc protrusions pressing on the nerves that exit the spine. Less common causes are piriformis syndrome, muscular tightness, arthritis of the spine, or infection. Sciatica is also common during pregnancy.
Symptoms: Pain often radiates along the course of the sciatic nerve, most often down the buttocks and back of the leg to below the knee. You may also experience numbness and weakness in the legs.
Sciatic pain can range from being mild to very painful and can last for weeks or months.
Treatment: Treatment is dependent on the cause of your sciatica. Your chiropractor will be able to diagnose the cause and, depending on the findings, you may be sent for an X-ray or recommended for an MRI scan.
Dr Alex says: “There are a large number of causes of sciatica and it’s important to work out the origin of your pain and then in the majority of cases, using a number of techniques we then work to alleviate the pain and keep you healthy well into the future. If not corrected fully sciatica is one of those problems that can come and go in episodes for a long period of time if not treated properly.”
