What does it feel like?

• Sever aching and sharp radiating leg pain, which commonly travels down the back of the leg to below the knee and into the foot and toes. Most people have coexisting lower back pain but it can occur without back pain, it is often more sever than coinciding back pain.
• It can occur both with or without weakness of the leg e.g. difficulty lifting your toes or foot and loss of sensation. It can cause marked limitations in movement due to the pain e.g. difficulty bending, putting shoes and socks on etc

How can it start?

It can start slowly over a few days or very suddenly e.g. as a result of an injury during a squat or dead lift. It can also start due to compression or inflammation the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve and often there can be no obvious reason

What causes Sciatica?

• Inflammation, irritation and compression of a nerve root in the lower lumbar spine, commonly caused by lumbar spine disc herniations.
• Foraminal stenosis, the narrowing of the passage where the nerve root exits the spine can cause sciatica, is more common in older populations
• Less commonly, it can be caused by a cyst, tumour or other pathology.

What aggravates the symptoms?

• Typically extending the knee and flexing the foot at the same time – for example when using the gas pedal.
• Spine movements – this depends on the reason for the sciatica, some movements and postures can irritate whilst others can relieve symptoms.

What are other associated factors?

Smoking, obesity and diabetes are likely to hinder your recovery

Here’s how Osteopathic Therapy can help:

We Investigate:

1. We will ask questions about your general health and symptoms, this helps us to rule out serious underlying conditions.
2. We perform tests of the sciatic nerve; sensation, reflexes and muscle strength and test the lumbar spine.
3. We look for provoking and relieving movements and postures, this helps form the basis of our treatment plan and home advice.

We Diagnose:

We will diagnose your condition and determine, as an example, if your Sciatica due to a disc injury. We will also rule out other possible diagnosis that can mimic sciatic type symptoms. 

We Treat:

Treatment modalities will include joint articulations, soft tissue therapy and progressive exercises to stimulate the sciatic nerve and strengthen the back

And finally, we will provide Exercise & Lifestyle Advice:

We will give advice on daily movements and resting positions that can be used for pain relief and what to avoid and what to do more of to aid your recovery.