What Is Sacoiliac Joint Pain?

If you put your hand on the very bottom of your spine, you will feel a very large bone. This is known as the sacrum. Now, move your hand a few inches up your spine, and you will feel your sacroiliac joint, which is one of the largest joints in the human body. The sacroiliac joint, which is often called the SI joint, forms the space between the sacrum and the lower part of the pelvis.

Function of the Sacroiliac Joint

• The sacroiliac joint has many important functions. It allows for dynamic movement of the pelvis and acts as a shock absorber.

Sacroiliac Joint Pain

• Sacroiliac joint pain is usually felt in the lower back. If only one side of the joint has been injured, you might only feel pain on one side of your back. In severe cases, the pain will be referred into the buttocks and the back of the leg. However, some people will also feel pain in the pelvis, in close proximity to the pubic bone. Other people will be fine when they are sitting or lying in bed, but will feel pain when moving or lifting heavy objects.

Sacroiliac Joint Pain Resulting from Trauma

• After a fall, or after receiving a blow to the area, the sacroiliac joint can become displaced. In fact, this can even happen while trying to prevent yourself from a fall. This is known as SI joint subluxation. If the sacroiliac joint is displaced, it will have a significant effect on the rest of the spine. The SI joint is composed of a networks of ligaments. If, as a result of trauma, these ligaments are stretched, the pelvic area can be shifted out of alignment. This can cause tissue inflammation as well as muscular spasms.

Sacroiliac Joint Pain as a Result of Chronic Conditions

• Certain postural alignments can create sacroiliac joint subluxation. For example, if you keep your PC on one side of your desk, you are overdeveloping the muscles on one side of the body and weakening the opposite side. This can influence your gait. If you are keeping more weight on one side of your body as you walk, you might eventually displace the SI joint. Additionally, uneven leg lengths can cause sacroiliac joint problems.

Misdiagnose of Sacroiliac Joint Pain

• Given the similarity of symptoms, sacroiliac dysfunction is sometimes misdiagnosed as sciatica. Sciatica is usually caused by herniation of one of the disks, which act as shock absorbers for the spine. While sacroiliac joint subluxation might eventually lead to sciatica, this does not always happen. In fact, it can be prevented by getting an immediate, accurate diagnosis and following through with physical therapy treatments designed to realign the SI joint.