Sciatica and sciatic like symptoms are a common complaint we see here in our New York Chiropractic and pain management clinic. Often times these symptoms arise with little or no back pain at all. Patients often complain of hip or leg pain as a result. Further investigation into the mechanism of injury and physical exam usually reveals evidence of lumbar involvement. It’s important to remember that Sciatica itself it merely a set of symptoms and not an actual diagnosis.
Conditions such as spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, facet encroachment or lumbar disc herniation are conditions that may lead to sciatica and sciatic like symptoms. In some cases these symptoms, if the underlying condition is left unresolved, can be chronic and remain for years. Patients will often say “I’ve got sciatica, had it for years”. This is a false statement for reasons mentioned above.
If the true origin of the symptoms is properly identified and the treatment plan matches this condition well you can resolve the sciatica. If a disc bulge or herniated disc are the underlying cause, which is most commonly the case, many non-surgical outpatient treatments are available to address this. If conventional chiropractic care, physical therapy, massage, etc. fail there are some more advanced approaches that seek to bridge the gap between failed therapy and a more invasive, and often risky, surgical intervention.
Spinal decompression therapy, active therapeutic movement and cold laser therapy (super-pulsed laser technology is best) have shown promise in resolving these conditions where other approaches have failed. To learn more about symptoms and specific lumbar nerve root involvement see this post on Sciatica NYC
Dr. Sadovnik
