Sciatica
- Sciatica Overview
- Sciatica Causes
- Sciatica Symptoms
- When to Seek Medical Care
- Exams and Tests
- Sciatica Treatment
- Self-Care at Home
- Medications
- Surgery
- Other Therapy
- Next Steps
- Follow-up
- Prevention
- Outlook
- Synonyms and Keywords
- Authors and Editors
- Viewer Comments: Sciatica - Describe Your Experience
The Problem Isn't Always Where It Hurts...Sciatica
Author: William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR
Editor: Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD
In evaluating patients in the office, we doctors must always keep a very open mind. For example, when a patient says that their problem is located in a certain area, they may use laymen's terminology that is technically inaccurate, they may have forgotten certain characteristics of the condition because of lack of sleep or pain, or the problem may feel like it comes from a certain location yet it may actually be coming from an area of the body far from where it is perceived. This last situation is commonly the case when a person has sciatica.
Sciatica is pain resulting from irritation of the sciatic nerve. Sciatica pain is typically felt from the low back to behind the thigh and radiating down below the knee. The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body and begins from nerve roots in the lumbar spinal cord in the low back and extends through the buttock area to send nerve endings down the lower limb.
Sciatica Overview
Sciatica (pronounced sigh-AT-ih-ka) is low back pain combined
with a pain through the buttock and down one leg. The pain usually goes past the
knee and may go farther to the foot. Sometimes, weakness in the leg muscles occurs with sciatica.
- The sciatic nerves are the largest nerves in the body
and are about the size of your little finger. They come out of the
column low in the back and then go behind the hip joint, down the buttock, and down the back of the leg to the foot.
- Sciatica is different from other forms of low back
pain because there are 2 sciatic nerves, and the pain is usually on 1 side.
- The pain is usually a shooting pain, like electricity. It can also burn like fire or tingle much like the feeling when your leg "goes to sleep." The pain can range from slightly annoying to totally unbearable. Some people have pain in one part of the leg and numbness in another part of the same leg.
Next: Sciatica Causes »
Viewer Comments & Reviews
Sciatica - Describe Your Experience
Please describe your experience with sciatica.
| Printer-Friendly Format | | | Email to a Friend |
Chronic Pain/Back Pain
Find tips and advances in treatment.
From WebMD
Back Pain Resources
- Back Pain: Do You Need a DEXA Scan?
- 13 Best Quit-Smoking Tips Ever
- Bladder Game: Can You Beat the Urge?
Featured Centers
- 12 Ways to Prevent the Spread of Viruses
- 10 Surprising Benefits of Treating Depression
- Healthy Home: To Buy or Not to Buy Organic?
Health Solutions From Our Sponsors
Sciatica
Cauda Equina Syndrome Overview
The spinal cord extends from the brain down through the spinal canal inside the vertebral column. Nerves that branch off of the spinal cord (also called nerve roots) are an extension of the spinal cord and are responsible for sending signals to and from the muscles and other structures throughout the body. These signals allow the brain to interpret information from the body including pain, touch, and sense of position. Outgoing signals allow the brain to control actions of the organs and muscle movements.
The spinal cord ends near the first lumbar vertebra in the lower back, forming the conus medullaris. The fibrous extension of the spinal cord is the filum terminale. The bundle of nerve roots below the conus medullaris is named the cauda equina (see Multimedia File 1).
Compression or inflammation of the nerve roots can cause symptoms of pain, altered reflexes, decreased strength, and decreased sensation. Although these s...
Read What Your Physician is Reading on eMedicine
Lumbar (Intervertebral) Disk Disorders »
Lumbar disk disease is a frequent source of low back pain.
Featured Topics
Explore 80+ Centers
- Allergy
- Allergy Medications
- Anaphylaxis
- Antidepressants
- Anxiety
- Arthritis
- Asthma
- Baby's Health
- Back, Neck, Head Injury
- Bioterrorism, Warfare
- Blood, Lymphatic System
- Bone, Joint, Muscle
- Brain, Nervous System
- Breathing Difficulties
- Burns
- Camping
- Cancer, Tumors
- Children's Health
- Cholesterol
- Cold and Flu
- CPR, Choking
- Cuts, Scrapes, Bruises
- Dementia
- Depression
- Diabetes
- Diabetic Coma, Insulin Shock
- Digestive System
- Dislocations
- Drowning
- Drug Overdose
- Ear, Nose, Throat
- Emotional Wellness
- Endocrine System
- Environmental Injuries
- Erectile Dysfunction
- Exercise, Nutrition
- Eye, Vision
- Fainting
- Fever
- First Aid, Emergency
- First Aid Kits
- Food Poisoning
- Foreign Bodies
- Fractures, Broken Bones
- Glaucoma
- Headache
- Health, Medical
- Heartburn, GERD, Reflux
- Heart, Blood Vessels
- Heart Attack
- Hepatitis
- Immune System
- Incontinence
- Infections
- Kidneys, Urinary System
- Lung, Airway
- Medications
- Men's Health
- Mental Health, Behavior
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Nosebleeds
- Osteoporosis
- Outdoor Living
- Overexposure
- Poisoning
- Procedures
- Psoriasis
- Public Health
- Scuba Diving, Swimming
- Seizures
- Senior Health
- Shock
- Skin, Hair, Nails
- Sleep Disorders
- Social, Family Health
- Sports Injury
- Sprains, Strains
- Statins
- STDs
- Substance Abuse
- Teen Health
- Teeth, Mouth, Oral Health
- Weight Management
- Wilderness Emergencies
- Women's Health
- Wounds
