You may experience some or all the following:

• Pain, burning, shooting, tingling, numbness in gluteal region, back of thigh, calf, foot, toes.
• Usually affects one leg not both.
• Lower back pain, sometimes your leg pain is worse than the back pain.

Symptoms are mostly unilateral (one side only) and you can often have more leg pain than back pain, with varying degrees of tingling and or numbness, weakness, drop foot.

Disc: Cushions between vertebrae wear out and get thinner

Spinal Stenosis: Narrowing of spinal canal

Spondylolisthesis: Vertebra above slips forward on the one below

Piriformis syndrome: Nerve compressed due to muscular tightness in buttock region

Pregnancy: Common in later pregnancy due to changes in spinal curves increasing nerve compression

Trauma: Sporting injuries, accidents, falls

Diagnosis is based on full medical history, physical examination to test muscles strength and reflexes. Images test, will allow the therapist or professional to determining the cause of sciatica.

The most common imagery test are:

• X-ray
• TC scans
• MRIs

Sciatica pain can be severe and debilitating and stops you from doing the simplest of life’s activities, which become impossible to perform. It is important to find a position where the pain response can be quietened down and decrease the central sensitisation which amplifies the pain.

The two most important priorities are to:

• Decompress the nerve impingement
• Decrease the chemical inflammation of involved structures
• Stabilise weak areas
• Restore normal movement to areas above and below that could put undue load on the damaged areas
• Self- management advice
• Cold/hot alternating packs, relief position • Active movements within pain limit
• Dos: nerve flossing, hip opener stretches
• Don’ts: low and soft seats, no lifting, no bending and twisting movements

Please note general back exercises that you may come across may not be suitable for your presentation and could aggravate your condition.

Make sure you see one of our specialists who can prescribe the right combination of exercises and movements for you