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Sciatic Nerve Disorders

Sciatic nerve disorder, commonly known as sciatica, is a medical condition which is mainly caused by compression of the sciatic nerve present in the body of an individual. Sciatica is generally characterized by pain in the lower region of the back and the legs. However, this pain can spread to various other parts of the body such as the buttocks and the feet.

  1. Causes of Sciatic Nerve disorder

    • Sciatic nerve disorder is most commonly developed due to the compression of lumbar nerves (mainly L4, L5, located with the lowest lumbar vertebrae), and sacral nerves (S1 to S3, located with the highest sacral vertebrae). In some cases sciatica develops due to the compression of the sciatic nerve itself.

      Some other causes of sciatic nerve disorder include spinal disc herniation, spinal stenosis and piriformis syndrome.

    Spinal Disc Herniation

    • Spinal disc herniation is one of the major causes for the development of sciatica. In spinal disc herniation the liquid center that is present in between the discs separating the vertebrae bulges outwards, thus leading to the degeneration of the nerves which thus leads to the outward projection of the spinal cord. Sciatica is generally caused due to the pressure that is generated due to such herniations of the spinal discs.

    Spinal Stenosis

    • Spinal stenosis is medical condition that is characterized by the obstruction and narrowing of some of the areas surrounding the spinal canal which thus exerts pressure on the spinal cord and on the various nerves branching from the spinal cord. When such an obstruction develops near the lower region of the back, it can affect the lumbar and sacral nerves which thus leads to the development of sciatica.

    Piriformis syndrome

    • In some individuals the sciatic nerve runs along the piriformis muscle which is present near the lower region of the limb. When the piriformis muscle shortens, it leads to the narrowing of the sciatic nerve, which leads to Sciatic nerve disorder or sciatica in individuals.

    Physical Treatments Used to treat Sciatica

    • Certain physical treatment techniques such as correction of the sleeping posture, strengthening of the back muscles are often prescribed for patients suffering from sciatica.

    Aggressive Form of Treatments

    • Certain aggressive forms of treatment techniques are often administered by doctors while treating aggressive forms of sciatic nerve disorders.

      One such treatment form is the epidural steroid injecting technique. In this treatment form the patients are generally administered with corticosteroids injection as corticosteroids help in reducing the swelling and inflammation caused due to sciatica and thus relieving the pain of the patients. Although the use of corticosteroids is still not accepted widely because many doctors and scientists believe that these provide just short term relief from the pain and are ineffective in the long run.

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