Pain that shoots from your lower back into your leg. Numbness or tingling in the buttocks. A burning sensation in your lower back. All these symptoms can be caused by a condition called sciatica.
This condition is one of the most common forms of lower back pain. In fact, it’s estimated that up to 40% of people will experience sciatica in their lifetime. In many cases, there is a deeper issue that’s causing your sciatica and the resulting pain, and a physical therapist can help you find and treat it.
What could really be behind your sciatica pain
Based on the name of this condition, you may believe that sciatica is caused by some issue with the longest nerve in your body — your sciatic nerve. You’d be right. But the question is, what issue is affecting this nerve and causing your sciatica pain?
Physical therapists know that there are many deeper problems that can cause sciatica symptoms. The most common issue that leads to sciatica is herniated lumbar discs; researchers report that about 90% of sciatica cases are caused by this issue.
Some of the other possible culprits include:
- Degenerative disc disease
- Lumbar spinal stenosis
- Spondylolisthesis
- Bone spurs
- Sports injuries to spine or back muscles
- Car accident injuries
Unless you’re aware of which of these lower back issues is causing your sciatica, you may want to seek help from a physical therapist. These specialists can pinpoint which issue is the culprit and develop a plan to effectively treat it.
Border Therapy Services can help you find out what’s causing your sciatica pain
Living with sciatica? Our Border Therapy Services team is ready to help you figure out exactly what’s causing your sciatica pain. We can do so by performing a free screening on you. Additionally, our team excels at building personalized therapy plans designed to treat and reduce sciatica symptoms.
Can’t make it to one of our therapy clinics? No problem! Our therapy specialists can help you at home using our virtual care and at-home therapy services. You can even start getting our help without a doctor’s referral.
Take the next step to start getting our help with your sciatica. Contact us today for more information about how we can help you or to schedule an initial appointment.