Physiotherapists commonly encounter patients who suffer from mild or severe forms of sciatica which is a medical term. This term denotes pain in the leg that is generated from the body’s sciatic nerve.
It has now become a universally used term for all pain that occurs in the back or even the hips and goes down towards the legs.
You can consider physiotherapy for sciatica which is deemed as an effective form of treatment, particularly with regard to enhancing your mobility levels and getting you back on your feet again.
However, before you confirm that you have sciatica, you should know that not all types of pain can be classified under the umbrella of this medical term.
There are various other muscle and tissue related issues along with joint pain that may not always be similar to sciatica and its symptoms.
Hence, you should understand some basic aspects carefully before you reach out to a physiotherapist near me.
Some basic aspects that you should know about
- Sciatic Nerve- Sciatica is the term which means pain that travels down the sciatic nerve which originates in the buttocks and runs downwards till the back of your leg. This is why you will require physiotherapy for sciatica since true cases equate to considerable pain in addition to tingling, numbness, weakness, loss of sensation in some cases and so on. Treatment may vary, depending on whether symptoms include compression of nerves, injuries to joints, muscle tension or inflammation.
- Facet Joints- Another reason where you need to find a physiotherapist near me, facet joints are smaller joints where you witness the meeting of two vertebrae. They may suffer from injuries owing to forceful compression or excessive load which jams these surfaces together. They may lead to severe pain in the hips, glutes and legs. Joint-opening or flexion-based exercises may help immensely in this regard.
- Sacroiliac Joints (SIJ)- SIJ refers to joints which are a component of the pelvic ring. The pain usually hits the pelvis and lower back in such cases although it can travel to the foot and leg as well. Treatment methods in such scenarios usually encompass core exercises for joint stability along with mobilization related exercises for better movement.
- Muscles- Skeletal muscles in our bodies may witness pain that is caused due to several trigger points or hyper-irritable fibers of muscles which have issues with their own neuromuscular system. Muscles of the hips and lower back usually refer down the pain towards the buttocks, side of the leg and even foot. Muscle irritation can lead to leg pain in so many cases. This is something that most people do not realize. Treatment by a skilled physiotherapist is highly essential in such situations. Trigger points require in-depth analysis and understanding on both your part and also by the physiotherapist who is treating you.
- Discs- A key part of what physiotherapists treat, intervertebral discs are those structures that look like donuts squished neatly between the vertebrae. This makes up the entire spinal column and injuries occurring to such structures usually involve anything from bulging and tearing to ruptures on the outer disc fibers as well. Such injuries may lead to severe pain in one leg or even both legs. Injuries to discs often have clearly directional attributes although extension is the direction in this scenario.
You should carefully understand the above mentioned key components and what sciatica actually is, before reaching out to a physiotherapist. Suffice to say, a trained professional will be able to help you understand what is wrong with your muscles/joints or the cause of pain and will be able to tackle it effectively.
Reference:
Sciatica Physiotherapy: 5 Things You Need To Know that Google May Not Tell You; MANIPPT
