When the sciatic nerve is inflamed, the condition is called sciatica. Not all leg pain is sciatica, but most all sciatica involves leg pain. When is leg pain sciatica? This is a gray area. In our discussion of scitica, let us keep in mind that leg pain may or may not be sciatica but, no matter what the cause of the leg pain, chirpractic care should still be used. Sciatica sufferers often have severe pain along the sciatic nerve path, usually in the back of the legs and thighs, sometimes to the ankle, foot and toes. There's not only searing, sharp pain but also parsthesia -- strange nerve experiences such as pins and needles, burning, tingling, prickling, crawling sensations or tenderness-that may be felt. Ironically, along with all the pain and nerve senations the leg might feel numb!

To complicate matters, the location of sciatica pain may vary. Although it's usualy in the back of the legs or thighs, in some individuals the pain is in the front or side of the legs. Sometimes the pain is in the hips. For some hapless suferers, the pain is in both legs: bilateral sciatica.

The Pain Varies

The quality of the pain may vary as well. There may be constant throbing, but then it may let up for hours or even days. The intensity may also vary. It may ache or be knife-like. Sometimes postual changes, like lying down or changing positions, affect the pain and sometimes they don't. In that way sciatica is like a toothache or earache. It's always there no mater what you do. In severe cases, sciatica can cause a loss of reflexes or even a wasting of the calf muscles. For sciatica sufferers, a good night's sleep may be a thing of the past. Simple things like walking, bending, turning sitting, or standing up can be difficult or imossible.

Causes of Sciatica

Like most other conditions, sciatica has a wide variety of causes. Unlike most other coditions, however, this health problem's relationship to the spinal column is often very obvious. A misaligned spine, a protruded or ruptured disc can irritate the sciatic nerve which may result in sciatica.

Sciatica has also been related to various non-spinal conditions. Advanced diabees can ause neuritis or inflammation of the sciatic nerve, arthritis of the spine can irritate the sciatic nerve, constipation, tumors and even vitamin deficiencies have been linked to sciatica.

Physical trauma has been related to sciatica. Cases of sciatica nave been reported following accidents, injuries and even childbirth, usually due to spinal misalinment!

Back Pain and Sciatica

Backache or hip problems may occur long before the sciatic symptoms show up, however, that isn't always the case. Sometimes sciatica is preceded by lower back or hip ymptoms and sometimes it isn't.

The Medical Approach

The medical approac to sciatic pain is to treat the symptoms using pain killers, muscle relaxers and various orthopedic treatments which may include traction, physical therapy and other therapeutic measures. Sciatica is particulrly frustrating to the medical doctor because in many cases even strong painkilling drugs bring little or no relief. However relief may be obtained from injections of painkillers directly into the nerve roots.

If the pain is not relieved, orthopedic and neuro-surgery may be resorted to as altenative treatments.