What is sciatica?

The sciatic nerve is the longest and widest single nerve in your body. It begins with five nerves in the lower back that join to form one nerve that branches through the pelvic bone. From there, it travels down the back of each buttock and thigh to the back of the knee, ending in the heel area of each leg. The sciatic nerve provides motor function to the abductor muscles in the hips, the muscles in the front of your lower leg and calf, and some muscles in your foot.

When the sciatic nerve becomes inflamed and painful, it’s referred to as sciatica. Sciatica is a type of lower back pain, but not all lower back pain is sciatica. The cause of inflammation is usually pressure on the nerve from a bulging disc, overgrowth of bone, pregnancy, muscle spasms, degenerative diseases like spinal stenosis, or an injury. The inflamed nerve causes pain and sometimes numbness and tingling anywhere along its path. In severe cases, a person with sciatica can also experience leg weakness and bowel or bladder changes.

How does physical therapy help?

With sciatica, resting can be counterproductive. Stretching and strengthening the nerves, muscles, and joints causing the pain, as well as education on posture and positioning, may help to decrease pressure on the nerve and thereby reduce pain. That’s why physical therapy can be of great benefit in relieving sciatica.

If you’re suffering from sciatica, our physical therapists will design a rehabilitation program to alleviate your pain. They’ll focus on strengthening your spine and core, as well as muscles in the lower back, abdomen, buttocks and hip to improve the flexibility of the muscles and nerves and restore pain-free movement.

Your sciatica rehabilitation program may include:

• Backward bending (extension) and forward bending (flexion) exercises to promote movement of the spine.
• Manual therapy techniques to reduce nerve compression
• Exercises to strengthen the abdomen, lower back, spine, hips or legs and supporting muscles or tendons. This may include isometric or isotonic exercises.
• “Nerve glides” (nerve stretching exercises) to increase movement and reduce symptoms
• Joint mobilization or manipulation
• Gait training to correct walking patterns that may contribute to sciatica
• Hands-on movement of the leg, hips and back to facilitate movement of the muscles and joints contributing to the pain.
• Posture and lifestyle modifications
• Home exercise program
• Massage