Do You Have Pain Radiating Down Your Leg?
July 8, 2009
I see many patients come through my office with pain related to “Sciatica”. Sciatica is actually a symptom consisting of leg pain which can be a shooting pain, a burning sensation, a tingling feeling, and/or general weakness in the leg. The most common condition that causes sciatica is a herniated or slipped disc that causes pressure on the nerves. The sciatic nerve is the thickest nerve in the body and it branches off to the lower spinal nerve roots and spinal nerves. It runs down the back of the leg.
Most commonly I see a disc irritating these nerves which causes the pain (or numbness and tingling or weakness) down the leg. Essentially patients have trouble standing or walking on the leg because when they stand they put more loading from the disc onto the nerve and that causes heightened irritation. If it’s a disc issue and you qualify for spinal decompression, in my opinion that is the best form of treatment.
The other key to long-term success is proper alignment through Chiropractic care. We make sure we’re addressing any type of abnormal loading on the spine, in other words any poor alignment. If there is additional pressure on the nerves from poor posture, that can contribute to recurring injuries. We make sure everything is balanced by utilizing specific postural adjustments by means of a low force spinal adjusting instrument know as the IMPULSE. For more information, visit www.neuromechanical.com. Additionally, we always follow up with physical rehab and stretching of the muscles to aid in stabilizing the spine.
But whatever you do, make sure you fully understand the risks associated with any procedure to treat your sciatica. I’m always so surprised with how few people know about spinal decompression technology and its proven success. Nearly all the patients that HAVE been through a spinal surgery wished they knew about spinal decompression first.
Take a look at this video for more information:


