What is sciatica?
Sciatica is a term that usually describes the symptoms of leg pain. However, this is not only related to leg pain. There are other things that the term describes too. It also describes many other things such as tingling in the legs, numbness or weakness that is originated from the lower back. The problem starts with pain in the lower back and it flows down through the buttocks and large sciatic nerve that is located in the back of the leg. The problem is severe in many cases. There may be too much of pain that may become intolerable.Sciatica is the major cause of severe leg pain seen in most of the people. The pain may become more severe by time and the whole leg may acquire the pain. The foot may become painful after sometime too. In the cold weather the pain can be severe.
The cause of Sciatica
The major cause of sciatica is compression of one of the five spinal nerve roots that finally give rise to the pain. If there is any damage to the sciatica nerve the pain is caused. The nerve controls muscle of the back of knee and the lower leg. It also provides sensation to the back of thigh. The compression of lumbar nerves L4 or L5 or S1, S2, S3 sacral nerves cause the pain. The pain passes through lower back, where it originates in the back of the leg to knees and lower leg. It can also travel to the sole of the foot. The most common causes of sciatica pain are:
• Pisiforms syndrome (this is a disorder that involves the pain in narrow muscles of buttocks).
• Slipped disk.
• Tumors
• Pelvic injury and fracture
Symptoms of sciatica
The one common symptom of sciatica is pain in the lower back and leg. The pain is varied widely. The sciatica may differ from person to person. At the start it may feel as the mild tingling or dull ache. The ache can cause burning sensation too. The pain may become severe in some cases. The pain can be so powerful that can make the person unable to move. The sciatica pain is commonly seen on only one side. There are many cases in which the person suffering from sciatica may feel very sharp pain in any part of the leg. There may be numbness in some other parts too. The pain can also be sensed on the back of calf and the sole of the foot. The leg affected fromsciatica pain may become unable due to weakness.
There are many other symptoms that are seen in people having severe cases of sciatica. The severe case of the pain is cause at following situations:
• When the person stands or sits the pain may be felt too much.
• Mostly at night, the pain becomes severe.
• The pain may become more while coughing, sensing and laughing.
• The pain is also caused when the person bends backward.
• The pain is also caused while walking few yards.