Understanding Sciatica: symptoms & diagnosis
What is sciatica? Sciatica is the name given to any case of pain that is caused by irritation or compression of the sciatic nerve.
The Sciatica nerve is the longest nerve in the body, running from the lower back down the back of each leg.
The sciatic nerve supplies information about movements of the leg and sends information about sensations back to the brain. The sciatic nerve is quite large, in fact, it is the largest peripheral nerve in the body.
The sciatic nerve is formed from the lower segments of the spinal cord; it is made up from
The most common cause of sciatica is a herniated spinal disc (aka slipped disc). When this happens, the natural cushion between the vertebra of your spine ruptures, causing the disc to push out into areas usually occupied by these nerves. The nerves are compressed, and people then experience the symptoms of pain, weakness, and numbness. Other conditions, such as spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, or piriformis syndrome can also cause sciatica symptoms by irritating the nerve.
What are the symptoms of sciatica?
Common symptoms of sciatica include:
• Pain in the buttock or leg that is worse when sitting
• Burning or tingling down the
Often, the pain extends from the lower back all the way to the back of the thigh and down through the leg. Depending on where the sciatic nerve is affected, the pain may also extend to the foot or toes.
For some people, the pain from sciatica can be severe and debilitating. For others, the pain from sciatica might be infrequent and irritating but has the potential to get worse.
Will I get better from sciatica? Sciatica Diagnosis
A doctor will take your medical history and perform an examination of the back, hips, and legs to test for strength, flexibility, sensation, and reflexes. Other tests may include:
• X-rays
• MRI scans
• CT scans
Nerve conduction studies to determine the health or disease of a nerve
The Sciatica nerve is the longest and widest single nerve in the human body. It begins in the lower back and runs through the buttock and down the lower
This led to the isolation of the sciatic nerve, found between the hamstring and heel on the lateral side of the thigh. Using fingers, the seams along the quadriceps and hamstring underwent a blunt dissection. In doing so, the glass-dissection probe was used to free the sciatic nerve embedded in the tissues. A four-inch string was inserted between the nerve and the tissue. Then the transducer was calibrated using a fifty-gram block under the “Frog Muscle” program.
Availability of nerve block therapy, chiropractic treatment and high dose of pain medicine which will promote numbness, reduce sciatic nerve pain, minimize fatigue and decrease pain sensation. Similarly, implanted pain pumps which delivers a medicine directly to the spinal cord and symptoms can be controlled by smaller dose than needed dose with oral medication.
The sciatic nerve is like a rope made up of several nerve roots stemming from the lower back and sacral area combining to make a nerve matrix as large as your thumb. This is susceptible to nerve compression. Since this nerve runs down the back of the thigh and lower leg it also causes leg pain. The pain can result from sitting in one position too long such as with secretaries or long haul truck drivers. Women who wear very high heels suffer from sciatic pain as well. Another well known cause of sciatic pain is a slipped or...
When a message comes to the brain from body parts such as the hand, the brain dictates the body on how to respond such as instructing muscles in the hand to pull away from a hot stove. The nerves in one’s skin send a message of pain to the brain. In response, the brain sends a message back dictating the muscles in one’s hand to pull away from the source of pain. Sensory neurons are nerve cells that carry signals from outside of the body to the central nervous system. Neurons form nerve fibers that transmit impulses throughout the body. Neurons consists of three basic parts: the cell body, axon, and dendrites. The axon carries the nerve impulse along the cell. Sensory and motor neurons are insulated by a layer of myelin sheath, the myelin helps
A herniated disc can be caused by trauma to the disc, but more often it occurs because of chronic deterioration, typically characterized by poor posture. Poor posture adds extra weight to the front of the intervertebral disc, forcing the nucleus pulposus out toward the spinal cord and nerve fibers.
Alternatively, rolled up blankets or pillows may be used to elevate the leg if a bolster is not available. To access the nerves on the medial aspect of the ankle (the tibial nerve and the saphenous nerve), the leg is flexed at the knee and externally rotated at the hip. For the deep peroneal nerve, the leg is placed in a neutral position, while for the nerves on the lateral aspect of the ankle (i.e. the superficial peroneal nerve and the sural nerve), the knee is flexed and the hip internally
Peripheral and central mechanisms involving nerve lesions and their input are substantial when perceiving phantom pain. Due to the impairment of peripheral nerves in the process of amputation, regenerative sprouting of damaged axons occurs and the activity rate of inflamed C-fibres and demyelinated A-fibres spontaneously increases (Flor, 2002). As a consequence of this nerve injury, a neuroma, which is a mass of pruned and tangled axons, may form in the residual limb producing abnormal (ectopic) activity (Katz, 1992). Flor, Nikolajsen and Jenson (2006) proposed that ectopic discharge from a neuroma in the stump illustrates abnormal afferent input to the spinal cord, which is a possible mechanism for unpro...
Tests after tests including MRI’s, X-rays, and experimental procedures were performed to show I had five ruptured disks in the lower lumbar section of my back. Tedious Examination done by a group of doctors concluded I had a crippling disease of the spinal column called spinal stenosis. Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal canal that causes compression of the spinal cord. (Lohr,1) If this disease was ignored any longer, it would lead to many other problems affecting other areas of my back to help support this weakness. It was an extremely rare case for an athlete my age.
Symptomology:.. Simple musculoskeletal back pain is a symptom of pain in the lumbrasacral area of the back (Jackson & Simpson, 2006). Upper thighs and knees are also known to be affected (Jackson & Simpson, 2006). This pain is usually described as dull pain (Jackson & Simpson, 2006). Spinal nerve root pain is localised down the leg, and usually continues below the knee and into the feet (Jackson & Simpson, 2006).
The human nervous system is divided into two parts, the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. The central nervous system, CNS, is just the brain and spinal cord. The peripheral nervous system, PNS, includes the nerves and neurons that extend outwards from the CNS, to transmit information to your limbs and organs, for example. Communication between your cells is extremely important, neurons are the messengers that relay information to and from your brain. Nerve cells generate electrical signals to transmit information.
You may initially notice the pain when cycling, but as the condition gets worse, you may have difficulty walking or wearing shoes due to the pain and discomfort.
The pain is often worse when you straighten the leg. If the pain is mild, you may be able to continue to walk. You may have severe pain if a torn fragment of meniscus catches between the tibia and femur. Sometimes, an injury that you had in the past causes pain months or years later, particularly if you injure the knee again. • Swelling.
Scoliosis is a deformation of the spinal column. The classification for Scoliosis is when the spinal column is curved sideways. Usually in the shape of the letter c or s. Unlike Lordosis, which is an extreme inward curve of the spine; or Kyphosis, a forward curve of the spine. Scoliosis's exaggeration lies in the how it's slanted.
Lastly the medulla oblongata where nerve centers vital the body survival has control over circulation of blood by regulating the heart beat and arterial blood pressure. The last part of the nervous system would be the spinal cord which extends from the base of the medulla oblongata to the junction between the first and second lumbar vertebrate. Its functions are to conduct sensory impulses from the rest of the body to the brain and send impulses from the brain to the body. (fleming-Mcphillips, 2011)