Symptoms of Sciatic Nerve Injury

The sciatic nerve, the longest nerve in the body, runs from the lower spine, through the buttocks and hips, then down the back of the leg. Although this nerve is in both legs, the condition and its symptoms generally occur only in one leg at a time. One important thing to keep in mind: The symptoms of a sciatic nerve injury actually reflect another problem. Symptoms sometimes can be relieved fairly easy, but if the condition persists, contact your health-care provider for further diagnosis.

Pain

• Pain is the most obvious symptom involving sciatic nerve injury. It generally begins in the lower back and travels along the path the nerve takes: through the buttocks, down the thigh and into the calf. The severity can range from mild to severe. Sometimes the pain manifests itself as a sharp or burning sensation, or it might feel like an electrical jolt.

Numbness

• With sciatic nerve injury, numbness, like pain, can occur along the path the nerve follows. Numbness can affect the entire leg, or one part of the leg might be numb while another area has pain. You also might experience a tingling sensation in your toes or part of your foot, almost as if they were being stuck with pins.

Loss of Bladder or Bowel Control

• If you lose bladder or bowel control with sciatic nerve injury, it could be a sign of cauda equina syndrome. This rare condition is serious and requires emergency care. If you have one or both of these symptoms along with sciatica, seek medical help immediately.

Causes

• Sciatic nerve injury often happens when a herniated disk compresses a nerve root in the lower spine. Any traumatic blow to the lower spine or compression of the nerve roots, such as a fall on the spine or an auto accident, can result in sciatic nerve injury. Tumors on the spine are another cause; as the tumors grow, they compress the nerve roots or spinal cord.

Treatment

• Symptoms generally can be relieved with exercise and stretching, hot or cold packs, and over-the-counter pain medications. Your doctor might send you for physical therapy to strengthen your back muscles and perhaps to help correct your posture. If the pain does not subside within a few months, the doctor might inject an epidural steroid in the affected area to help relieve inflammation around the nerve. In severe cases--when extreme weakness is being experienced, when there is a loss of bladder or bowel control, or when no other therapies have worked--your doctor might recommend surgery to repair the damage.